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exclusive
Candidates
tied to Kimbrew win big in school, college board elections
School
board: Estrada out, Garrett in
College board: Davis, Hamilton, LeBlanc victorious
By
Allison Jean Eaton
Bulletin Editor
COMPTON—The votes are in, and candidates whose campaigns had ties to
a notorious political consultant and former school board member convicted of
misappropriating public funds overwhelmingly won elected office in last night’s
school and college district board elections.
Aside from Paulette Simpson-Gipson, who narrowly lost the fourth seat up for
grabs on the Compton Unified School District Board of Trustees to incumbent
Marjorie Shipp, candidates appearing on mailers paid for in part by an organization
associated with Basil Kimbrew — which Kimbrew contends he has no ties
to despite a business card proving otherwise — easily walked away with
wins.
In what was likely a shocker even for Mae Thomas, who made a goodbye speech
at the end of last week’s school board meeting, the outspoken and often
unruly incumbent earned the most votes in yesterday’s school board election,
followed by incumbent Satra Zurita, newcomer Margie Garrett and Shipp.
As of about 12:25 a.m. early Wednesday with all 49 precincts reporting, Thomas
was the top vote-getter with 2,280 votes, or 16.05 percent. She was tailed
by Zurita with 2,256, or 15.88 percent; Garrett, 1,763, or 12.41 percent; and
Shipp, 1,647, or 11.59 percent.
Both Thomas and Zurita held their first- and second-place slots from beginning
to end, each getting a big boost from absentee ballot counts in the high 900s
that placed them leaps and bounds ahead of most candidates.
Coming in fifth was Simpson-Gipson, with 1,605 votes, or 11. 3 percent. Incumbent
Joel Estrada trailed with 1,371, or 9.65 percent, followed by Deatra Handy,
900, or 6.33 percent; Tomas Carlos, 860, or 6.05 percent; Joseph Lewis, 655,
or 4.61 percent; Willie Carson, 505, or 3.55 percent; and Nydja Quarles, 365,
or 2.57 percent.
Neither Thomas nor Zurita returned numerous calls or e-mails for comment on
their successful campaigns. A message left on Thomas’ home phone number
was not returned as of about 4 p.m. Wednesday, when Zurita had still not responded
to three phone calls, a text message and an e-mail from The Bulletin.
Despite being featured on many of its mailers, Zurita told The Bulletin last
week that she ran her own campaign and was not a part of any slate. She said
she was endorsed by the teachers’ union, which she took advantage of
because it added a much-needed financial boost to her campaign.
She, along with Thomas, Garrett and Simpson-Gipson, appeared on mailers partially
funded by the Compton Education Association and an organization based in Moreno
Valley called the California Democratic Voter Guide. According to a business
card obtained by The Bulletin, Kimbrew works for that organization as a political
consultant. However, he denied any involvement with the organization during
a telephone conversation Wednesday and accused nearly a dozen sources of lying.
But individuals who worked for the teachers’ union slate or for individual
candidates on that slate said Kimbrew was running everything from the design
and printing of the mailers to allegedly enlisting students from Dominguez
High School to work the slate’s phone banks and walk literature in the
community without pay, instead crediting them for community service hours,
a graduation requirement.
District officials said they have yet to identify the students involved, but
that candidates are not permitted to use students to further their political
activities unless the students are paid.
Shipp said Tuesday night that she believes the district is headed for troubled
times.
“The kids are going to suffer,” the former teacher said. “The
first thing they’ll do is get rid of the superintendent. And she’s
(Superintendent Dr. Kaye Burnside) doing a phenomenal job.”
The mood was somber at the Brandy Salon in Compton, where Estrada, Handy and
Carlos accepted early on that they would lose. Later, they said racism appeared
to be a factor.
“Somebody told me today, ‘You know why you’re losing? You
ran with two Latinos,’” Handy said.
A campaign staffer said a woman told her the same thing about Handy — that
she was being dragged down because she ran with Latinos. Estrada said a school
board member echoed the sentiment, saying Estrada might have won had he not
brought Carlos on board.
“That’s the part that stings the most,” Estrada said. “I
don’t
mind losing, but it stings that there’s an undercurrent of discrimination.”
With Estrada voted off the board, the city has a single Latino elected official,
Lorraine Cervantes, president of the college board. But that board has no decision-making
power, merely serving in an advisory capacity under the state-appointed special
trustee.
Latinos make up more than 60 percent of the city’s population and at
least 75 percent of the school district’s student population. But because
so few Latinos vote, their community is stuck in a state of disenfranchisement.
College district results
In the Compton Community College District Board of Trustees race, former longtime
City Clerk Charles Davis nabbed the Trustee Area 1 seat in an upset that left
recently appointed Trustee Bruce Boyden in finishing last. With all 36 precincts
reporting as of about 12:25 a.m. Wednesday, Davis walked away with 1,253 votes,
or 42.82 percent. A far-off second, Skyy Fisher secured 747 votes, or 25.53
percent, followed by Mary Edwards, 584, or 19.96 percent, and Boyden, 342,
or 11.69 percent.
“I guess I’m back in the game,” Davis said Wednesday. His
first order of business is to learn all that he can.
“There’s so many variables there. I need to learn what the job
is. I know municipal government, but I don’t know the educational process.
You don’t
want to take action if you don’t know what you’re doing,” he
said.
“A lot of people are talking about accreditation stuff,” Davis
continued. “But
that’s way down the road, so we need to focus on the FCMAT scores.”
Trustee Area 2 easily went to John Hamilton, who secured 947 votes, or 64.47
percent. Olivia Verrett followed with 339 votes, or 23.08 percent, and P.J.
Johnson, 183, or 12.46 percent.
Hamilton did not respond to a call seeking comment as of early Wednesday evening.
Both Davis and Hamilton appeared on mailers along with the four teachers’ union
slate candidates.
Trustee Area 4 was nearly an effortless win for Dr. Deborah Sims-LeBlanc, as
her lone challenger all but fell out of the race despite still appearing on
the ballot. She earned 764 votes, or 64.8 percent.
LeBlanc said the Paramount community is ecstatic to once again have representation
on the college board. She’s interested not only in facilitating a partnership
between Paramount schools and the former college, but also focusing on restoring
the school’s esteem in the world of higher education.
“I just want to make sure Paramount schools are well represented, and
that we pull this college together, and we will,” she said. “One
of the first things that I am doing is getting stuff in motion” that
will increase “our
credibility in the higher education community.”
To that end, she flew to Cleveland, Ohio, overnight to make an early Wednesday
morning speaking engagement at the annual conference of the American Association
of Adult and Continuing Education. Her topic? “A Call to Excellence in
Community Service: A Look at Compton Community College District.”
Polling place problems
A number of voters and two unsuccessful candidates said there were questionable
practices taking place at various polling places — allegations that are
nothing new in the city of Compton.
At Kennedy Elementary, a poll worker allegedly had a teachers’ union
slate mailer sitting on the sign-in desk inside the polling location. At another
site, voters said they were told they had to vote for Zurita as the poll worker
handed them ballots. And at another, workers were allegedly prematurely giving
voters provisional ballots, which are not immediately counted and are sometimes
not counted at all depending on the size of the gap between winning and losing
candidates.
These issues, along with what several longtime Compton voters cited as a suspiciously
high number of absentee ballots, could spur a recount as well as signature
verification of all absentees.
“It looks like someone stacked the deck,” said Alex Linderos, who
said he has run several area candidates’ campaigns in the past.
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