> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Supporters rally behind school board candidate - URL: https://www.smdp.com/supporters-rally-behind-school-board-candidate/ - Published: 2002-10-04T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-23T00:46:11.000Z - Author: Andrew Fixmer - Tags: Government & Politics, Santa Monica, #archive-import *County registrar still cannot find voter form* Calling an effort to derail his school board candidacy “trivial,” Oscar de la Torre reiterated his commitment to Santa Monica’s youth at a rally Thursday in front of City Hall. “Today we let everyone know there are issues that are more important to the families of this district than when I registered (to vote),” de la Torre said in a speech before about 50 supporters. > “Today we let everyone know there are issues that are more important to the families of this district than when I registered (to vote).” — — OSCAR de la TORRE School board candidate Many of those supporters were young people, who stood behind him in a row holding orange signs with his name on them. “When they heard that people wanted to take my name off the ballot, they said, ‘We got your back,’” de la Torre said of his young backers. He said the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District needs people like him who will be courageous, ask tough questions and be accountable. De la Torre said he followed proper procedure in registering to vote before announcing his intention to run and that questions to the contrary were politically motivated. “I think there are some people who are scared of change for whatever reason,” he said. “I feel I have a lot to give and to add to the board.” Kim Nishita, a third grade teacher and Santa Monica resident, agreed, saying that de la Torre has “proven commitment” to the youth of the community and especially the Pico neighborhood, which is located on the eastside of Santa Monica. She said she was nervous that votes for de la Torre wouldn’t be counted when she first heard about the registration questions. She still isn’t positive the votes will be counted. “It was definitely a political ploy,” Nishita said. City Clerk Maria Stewart and City Attorney Marsha Moutrie have decided no official action will be taken to decide whether de la Torre is an eligible candidate. In a formal letter to the Los Angeles County Registrar and to de la Torre and his attorney Fred Woocher dated Oct. 1, Stewart said a photocopy of a voter registration form had been submitted that “tends to support your claim that you registered in Santa Monica before your nomination papers were issued.” But Stewart goes on to say that the county cannot find the original copy of the voter registration form in its files, because the form may instead have been sent to the California Secretary of State’s Office. “This office cannot assess whether the documentation submitted establishes, as a matter of law, that Mr. de la Torre meets the (election) requirements,” wrote Stewart to county officials. “However the documentation does constitute some evidence that he registered or attempted to register prior to taking out his nomination papers.” “Because such evidence has now been submitted, we are withdrawing our request that Mr. de la Torre’s name be removed from the ballot.” Instead, if de la Torre wins the election, the results will likely be sorted out in a potential lawsuit brought by whomever lost. Stewart challenged de la Torre’s candidacy on Sept. 19 for not being a registered Santa Monica voter when he first filed his intention to run for public office on July 17. But by the time Stewart raised the issue of de la Torre’s candidacy, the November ballot for the county had already been sent to be printed. And the city had to send its ballot, with de la Torre’s name on it, to be printed Sept. 24. State election code requires candidates to be able to vote for the office they intend to become a candidate for, and officials with the Los Angeles County Registrar said de la Torre first registered as a Santa Monica voter on Aug. 5. Stewart said the city requires every candidate to attend a seminar explaining the rules and regulations of running for office. The first thing candidates are told during the seminars is they must be registered Santa Monica voters when they first make their intention known they may run for an elective office, Stewart said. She said de la Torre attended a July 17 seminar and then afterward “pulled papers” to run for office. He submitted his petition with 100 signatures on the Aug. 9 filing deadline. But last week de la Torre submitted a photocopy of an overseas voter registration form dated July 16\. The form was filled out during a “Rock the Vote” registration drive, he said. The Los Angeles County Registrar does not have a copy of the form on file, but Woocher said he has tracked down Bill Ruiz, the individual who ran the voter registration program. Ruiz said he mailed out the forms that day, but Woocher said at least three other individuals that filled out a form that day were never registered by the county. Woocher believes the form either got lost in the mail, or he said sometimes national ballots are sent to the secretary of state. De la Torre said he made a photocopy of the form because, unlike California voter registration forms, the federal form did not have a receipt proving the document had been filled out. When a letter from the registrar’s office did not arrive confirming he had changed his registration, de la Torre said he re-registered to vote on Aug. 5 to comply with state law that only allow registered voters to circulate petitions to run for office. Chuck Allord, a city council candidate, stood nearby Thursday’s rally for de la Torre holding a sign that questioned the candidate’s motives. Allord clashed with several of de la Torre’s supporters, who called him a “racist” and a “hater.” “Because they disagree with me, they call me a racist and that’s not right,” he said. “Oscar’s all about race. He’s not about what a quality educator he’d be.” > “Oscar’s all about race. He’s not about what a quality educator he’d be.” — — CHUCK ALLORD City council candidate *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on October 4, 2002.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/100402.pdf?ref=smdp.com)