2 RIORDAN CHOICES WIN L.A. SCHOOL RACE.

Byline: David R. Baker Daily News Staff Writer

Mayor Richard Riordan's $2 million bid to elect a new, reform-minded school board majority scored at least a partial victory Tuesday, with two of his candidates winning seats and a third headed for a runoff against a powerful incumbent.

In the fourth race, incumbent David Tokofsky - who had Riordan's backing - was locked in a seesaw race with Yolie Flores Aguilar.

Riordan-backed candidates Caprice Young and Mike Lansing easily beat incumbents Jeff Horton and George Kiriyama, respectively. And in a crowded race in South Central Los Angeles, the mayor's candidate, Genethia Hayes, took a slight late lead over board member Barbara Boudreaux, most likely triggering a runoff election.

The returns represented a repudiation of the school board's performance and a victory for a broad coalition supporting educational reform.

Riordan said he was confident his entire slate would win and help turn around a school district he has bitterly criticized for its dismal student test scores and administrative scandals.

``As far as I'm concerned the education election is the most important of the day,'' Riordan said. ``I think we have sent a message, a loud and clear message, that the system is in disgrace and need to change.''

Young, an IBM executive and former Riordan aide, said the election results showed voter frustration with Los Angeles' ailing public schools.

``People really believe it's time for the schools to be fixed, and the main thing we need is accountability at the school board level,'' she said.

Champions of local educational reform said even having one or two new members elected to the board could help turn around the district by demonstrating to other board members the public's determination for change.

``Even if only one new member comes in, there will have been lessons learned,'' said Maria Casillas, director of the Los Angeles Annenberg Metropolitan Project, which funds reform efforts in schools. ``If you have a whole slate of new people come in, that will send a really big message.''

The vote capped a year of mounting calls for reform at the 700,000-student Los Angeles Unified School District. While Riordan's attack on the school board was the most visible and personal - he has called the current board evil and inept - other groups weighed in with their own plans for change.

Their presence shaped the race, as incumbents and challengers alike rushed to declare themselves reformers. And the mayor's money turned what used to be little-noticed, incumbent-friendly elections dominated by cash from teacher and administrator unions into bruising political fights.

Lacking a set platform from the mayor, Riordan's hand-picked candidates mostly adopted recommendations made by a committee of prominent civic leaders led by Harold M. Williams, former head of the Getty Trust.