‘Room to Develop’ : Poll Finds Good News for Bird’s Campaign

A new poll of California voters has come up with a thread of good news for embattled California Chief Justice Rose Elizabeth Bird.

The survey showed that those who know about her continue to oppose her reelection next year by better than a 2-1 margin. That’s the bad and, by now, familiar news.

Independent pollster Steven Teichner of Orange County and Philadelphia said, however, that his survey found something to cheer Bird as well: Despite almost unceasing criticism of her 8 1/2-year tenure on the court from conservatives and law enforcement officials and growing public demands for execution of murderers, “Rose Bird as a personality, as an individual, is still not known.

“That means they (Bird’s campaign) may have room to develop that perception.”

The survey was conducted by Teichner Associates in two parts, a sampling of 450 residents of five Southern California counties and a poll of 1,200 voters statewide. It was released Friday night by KABC-TV.

30% Knew Her

According to Teichner, only 30% of the residents of Southern California could correctly answer the question, who is the chief justice of California? The other 70% guessed wrong or said they didn’t know. Among men, 40% could name Bird; 22% of the women could.

When it came to the death penalty, Teichner said, 52% of the Southern Californians polled blamed the Supreme Court for the fact that there have been no executions since 1977. The rest blamed someone else or said they did not know. Central to the campaign to oust Bird from the Supreme Court in the election in November, 1986, is the charge by police and prosecutors that she and other liberals are standing in the way of implementing the law.

On the other hand, voters statewide continue to tell pollsters that they are going to vote against Bird’s confirmation by overwhelming numbers.

Of those who are aware that Bird is chief justice, Teichner said, 19% were inclined to vote for her and 44% were ready to vote against her. The remaining 37% did not know. A Los Angeles Times Poll in June found a similar split, with 27% in favor and 44% opposed.

In the Teichner poll, 27% of the Democrats favored her retention, 32% opposed her and 41% were undecided. Among Republicans, only 7% would vote for her, 61% were opposed and 31% remained undecided.