Political Mudslinging in Lynwood; Crooked Campaigns

LYNWOOD, Calif. – Political action committees in Lynwood pulled out all the stops in the past two elections, rummaging through candidates’ pasts and publishing campaign material in order to sway voters. The methods were effective, but the committees don’t always play by the rules.

During the November 2007 election, a committee called Voters Against Corruption used a doctored photograph to accuse candidate Jim Morton of encouraging prostitution at his Long Beach Boulevard motel. According to Silvia Ortiz, who claims to have “provided the people” to pose as prostitutes for the photograph, Morton’s political rival Aide Castro helped the committee develop the anti-Morton campaign.

“Sometimes you get caught up with wanting to win so bad that the human side comes out,” said Ortiz. Ortiz confessed to her role in staging the photographs during the public comment section of a City Council meeting in February. She said she warned Castro that she would be making the confession and told her to “do the right thing” and make amends for her role in tarnishing Morton’s reputation.

“Maybe in a few years she’ll see that I did her a favor,” said Ortiz, who helps market Lynwood’s campaigns by going door-to-door and distributing campaign material. Ortiz said she is no longer on speaking terms with Castro.

The rules of the Fair Political Practices Commission state that candidates can only be involved with committees if the involvement is clear in the committee’s name. Castro spearheaded her own committee during the November election, called the Committee to Elect Aide Castro, and claims to have had no involvement with Voters Against Corruption, other than their support.

When asked to provide the names of Voters Against Corruption committee members, Castro refused. “They wouldn’t appreciate me disclosing that information,” she said. “They would be very upset with me.”

The committee was established by Christopher Robles, a former Montebello City Council candidate who donated frequently to past political-action committees at state and local government level, including the Los Angeles County Democratic Central Committee. Robles could not be contacted for comment as his phone line has been disconnected and he has moved from Montebello.

The deadline to file campaign finance statements was Jan. 31, and Voters Against Corruption have yet to submit their consolidated campaign disclosure form. Robles could be subject to a $5,000 penalty for breaking the regulations of the Political Reform Act of 1974, according to Roman Porter of the Fair Political Practices Commission.

Political action committees are easy to establish and can be quickly dissolved. It only takes one person to form a committee, and the identities of the members are protected until documents have been completed and Public Information Act requests can be made.

A campaign piece produced during the recall election in September 2007 accusing Castro of drug smuggling was attributed to a committee that denied any connection to the piece and claimed a separate party had unlawfully used their name. According to Ortiz, Fernando Pedroza was responsible for the piece. Pedroza was one of the council members being recalled and Castro’s cousin.

“We’re supposed to be doing this the democratic way,” said Ortiz, who claims that Lynwood’s elections are convoluted by the propaganda produced by political-action committees. “It’s not what voters want; it’s whose got the money to sway the vote.” And so long as committees continue to side-step campaign laws, it will be difficult to pin-point who is doing the swaying.