Newport Beach : Sumner Hires Noted Political Consultant

Sacramento political consultant David Townsend, one of the top Democratic campaign consultants in California, was hired Friday to handle Orange County Democratic Party chairman Bruce Sumner’s write-in campaign for Congress against a Democrat who is a follower of Lyndon LaRouche.

Sumner is seeking to defeat Art Hoffmann, a technical writer who is a member of the extremist LaRouche political faction and the only Democrat listed on the ballot in the June 3 primary election.

Sumner and other party leaders were startled to discover that Hoffmann was the only Democrat to have filed for the 40th Congressional District seat now held by Rep. Robert E. Badham (R-Newport Beach). Although the Democrats do not expect either Hoffmann or Sumner to defeat Badham, they fear that the county party will be disgraced if a LaRouche Democrat is elected as its standard-bearer. So about two weeks ago they decided on a write-in effort.

LaRouche Democrats, who advocate, among other things, increased steel production, a laser-beam defense and the screening and quarantine of AIDS victims, recently won the lieutenant governor and secretary of state nominations in Illinois’ Democratic primary.

Sumner said he is delighted to have retained Townsend, “one of the best-known political consultants in all of California.”

Townsend, president of Townsend and Co., has handled major Democratic political campaigns and key nonpartisan races in California for the last decade.

He is handling Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley’s campaign for governor and state Supreme Court Justice Joseph Grodin’s confirmation election to the court. Previous Townsend campaigns have included Walter Mondale’s 1984 presidential campaign in California and reelection campaigns for state Sens. Robert Presley (D-Riverside), Art Torres (D-South Pasedena) and David A. Roberti (D-Los Angeles).

Townsend could not be reached for comment Friday. Sumner declined to say how much he will be paying Townsend or how much money his campaign has raised so far.

But he said that the 2-week-old write-in effort is going “extremely well” and he promised to “raise as much money as is needed to beat the La-Rouche candidate.”