Game Theory 101: Your Vote Could Reverse Court's Ruling On LAUSD Takeover Statute

By Walter Moore, Chief Economist and Legal Analyst, L.A. Policy Institute

By all means, vote for whoever you believe is the best candidate for the LAUSD Board. Given the state of our schools, you can reasonably conclude that anyone would be better than the incumbents. Several of the candidates, moreover, are actually qualified by training and experience.

But before you cast your vote, you need to know that your decision could, in effect, REVERSE the Superior Court's ruling that A.B. 1381, the statute giving the Mayor formal control over the LAUSD, is unconstitutional. You may jump out of the proverbial frying pan and into the fire.

Sounds crazy, doesn't it? After all, now that the Superior Court has ruled that the statute is unconstitutional, how could the statute take effect unless the Court of Appeal or Supreme Court reverses the Superior Court? Easy: the School Board could decide to call off the litigation.

If Villaraigosa's supporters gain control four of the seven seats on the School Board, those four can simply dismiss or "settle" the lawsuit rather than forcing Villaraigosa to try prosecuting his appeal. The statute giving Villaraigosa formal control over the LAUSD would take effect, even though the Superior Court has ruled it is unconstitutional.

Villaraigosa already has one ally on the board, namely, Monica Garcia. Two more allies, namely, Yolie Flores Aguilar and Richard Vladovic in Districts 5 and 7, are apparently all but guaranteed in the upcoming election, because they are running unopposed by any incumbents.

That means Villaraigosa needs only one of his two other candidates to win, namely, Tamar Galatzan (District 6) or Johnathan Williams (District 1). Those two candidates are running against two incumbents, namely, John Lauritzen and Marguerite Poindexter LaMotte, respectively. If Galatzan or Williams wins, Villaraigosa will have the "critical mass" to get the LAUSD to drop the lawsuit, even though the LAUSD prevailed in the Superior Court.

So as you weigh the various pros and cons of the candidates, consider the possibility that your vote may not just determine who is on the board, but may also give effect to an unconstitutional statute that would give Mayor Villaraigosa control over the LAUSD's multi-billion dollar budget.

I, for one, plan to ask Mr. Williams, when he comes to a debate in my neighborhood next week, whether he will promise NOT to vote to dismiss or settle the Mayor's lawsuit. If he says "yes," he's got my vote. If he's evasive or says "no," well, as much as I hate the frying pan, the fire would be even worse.

Find out more: Daily News.