Familiar political terrain

The election has changed, but the names remain the same; two have applied for Newport Beach council vacancy; endorsements galore; Seymour Hersh is a hot ticket at the library. This year’s elections may look familiar to voters in the 48th Congressional District, which includes Newport Beach -- they’ll see at least three of the same candidates on the ballot as they did in late 2005. Libertarian Bruce Cohen and Democrat Steve Young already have filed papers to run against Republican Rep. John Campbell, who won the House seat in a December special election.

This go-round will be the third try for Cohen, a real estate broker from Lake Forest.

“We [Libertarians] sit down as a group and decide who’s going to be the best person for the job and who wants to do it, and I guess it was a combination of those factors,” he said. “I feel I was able to be a very effective spokesman for the party.”

And he’ll be in good Libertarian company on the 2006 ballot: the party has fielded candidates for most of Orange County’s assembly, state senate and congressional districts, including all of Newport-Mesa’s seats.

“We’re starting to undergo a renaissance,” Cohen said of his party. In the past, the Libertarians accepted any warm bodies, but now they’re finding candidates who better fit the party’s ideology, he said.

“We feel that the party has matured and we have a lot more people, and of higher caliber, that want to participate in this because they see the future of the party,” Cohen said.

The primary will be in June and the general election in November.

2 to choose from for Newport Beach City Council vacancy

As of Wednesday, two Newport Beach residents had applied to fill the seat on the City Council left vacant by the resignation of John Heffernan. Newport Coast resident Nancy Jones and Scott Peotter, who lives in the Port Streets, have turned in their applications.

If political connections carry weight with the council, Peotter may have a leg up -- on his application, he named as a reference a no less illustrious person than Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Chris Cox.

One expected name hasn’t yet turned up: Dolores Otting -- who lost to Heffernan by 3,125 votes in 2004 -- was recommended by Heffernan as his replacement, and she said she plans to apply. Otting and any other potential candidates have until 5 p.m. Jan. 31. The council could appoint someone to the seat Feb. 7, and that person would have to run in November to keep the seat.

Harkey picks up another political supporter

Continuing her recent bonanza of endorsements, Republican state Senate candidate Diane Harkey this week announced she’s got the backing of Orange County Sheriff Mike Carona. Harkey, a Dana Point City Councilwoman, is running for the 35th District Senate seat, which represents Costa Mesa and Newport Beach.

She’ll face Huntington Beach Republican Assemblyman Tom Harman in an April 11 special primary for the open seat. Harkey’s campaign also reported raising $288,000 for her election bid.

McClintock backs Van Tran for state Senate seat

Costa Mesa Assemblyman Van Tran scored another endorsement this week in his bid for the 34th District state Senate seat: state Sen. Tom McClintock. That was added to a list that includes Orange County GOP Reps. Ed Royce and Dana Rohrabacher, who gave Tran their support last week.

And Tran had some other potentially good news this week when Orange County Supervisor Lou Correa, a Democrat, announced he’ll run for the 34th District seat. Correa will face Democratic Assemblyman Tom Umberg in the June primary, meaning Democrats can’t save all their money to defeat the Republican winner.

Tickets going fast for Seymour Hersh appearance

A few tickets are still available for one of two Newport Beach lectures by Pulitzer prize-winning journalist Seymour Hersh in February. Hersh is scheduled to speak at the Newport Beach Central Library, 1000 Avocado Ave., on Feb. 10 and 11. A persistent critic of the U.S. government, Hersh launched his career in 1969 writing about the My Lai massacre in Vietnam, and in 2004 he broke the story of the torture of Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib, which is the subject of his most recent book.

The Feb. 11 appearance is sold out, but $40 tickets for the Feb. 10 evening lecture can still be purchased by calling 866-301-2411 or online at www.nbplfoundation.org.20060126iqt1c2knDOUGLAS ZIMMERMAN / DAILY PILOT(LA)Libertarian candidate Bruce Cohen, shown at a debate in December, has thrown his hat in the ring to run against Rep. John Campbell this year.