Candidate:

A former Democratic congressional candidate has charged that a rival campaign’s volunteer made a threatening phone call to his home, urging him to drop out of the race.

Richard Lara, of Huntington Beach, filed an incident report with the Huntington Beach Police Department Feb. 18, alleging that fellow Democratic activist Vern Nelson told him he would make “a lot of enemies” if he did not drop out and support Huntington Beach Mayor Debbie Cook.

Lara cited a family illness when he dropped out of the race for the Democratic nomination in the 46th Congressional District — the seat is held by Republican Dana Rohrabacher — last week, leaving the race between Cook and small business owner Dan Kalmick.

Lara further alleged in follow-up interviews that Nelson’s tone was “angry” and that he told Lara “bad things would happen” if he stayed in the race, prompting Lara to worry about the safety of him and his volunteer staff.

Nelson disagreed with Lara’s version of events, saying the call was friendly in nature and an earnest attempt at understanding why Lara was challenging Cook.

“I was just concerned about him, as a friend, because I ... had a feeling he was going to make a lot of enemies doing this,” Nelson said. “I remember he did get sort of nervous — as if I was making some kind of veiled gangster threat — when I said that, but it wasn’t a threat.

“I didn’t ask him to support Debbie Cook, and I didn’t ask him to drop out, either. I just repeatedly asked him what he was thinking, and why he was running.”

But Lara remembers things differently, saying the call was one of many instances in which local Cook supporters privately urged him to drop out of the race and “make way” for the mayor’s presumptive nomination. He added that he believed the Cook campaign was behind the efforts.

“It seems like this was some kind of decision that had been made by a bunch of Democrats, and that a lot of people thought it was best for me to step down — I think it’s all connected,” he said. “The Cook campaign seems to have this sense of entitlement, and it’s as though she thinks she has an exclusive right to be in this race.”

Cook and her campaign denied there was any effort to threaten or even gently persuade Lara into dropping out, adding they would have preferred Lara stay in the field of Democratic contenders.

“Well, you know, there’s no there there,” said Cook Communications Director Joe Shaw. “Our campaign has never contacted Richard Lara — if some volunteer has, we can’t control that, but we haven’t planned anything towards Richard Lara.”

“Look, anybody can go to the police department and say whatever they want, and the police have to file it,” Cook said. “Besides, it would be contrary to my interests to persuade Mr. Lara from dropping out of the race — the more candidates in the pool dilute the other candidates left in it.”

According to the incident report, Nelson’s behavior did not amount to “Threatening Telephone Calls” under state codes, and police will not pursue the case.

CHRIS CAESAR may be reached at (714) 966-4626 or at [email protected].