ARNOLD SCORNED BY BACKER OVER SHIFT ON REDISTRICTING.

Byline: David M. Drucker Sacramento Bureau

SACRAMENTO - A day after Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger expressed his willingness to postpone the start of new legislative districts, a major backer of his ballot measure blasted the governor Thursday for retreating from his earlier demand for swift change.

Los Angeles businessman Bill Mundell said his committee has gathered 900,000 signatures to place the proposed constitutional amendment on the ballot, and added he is not interested in delaying its implementation past 2006.

``We believed the governor when he told us that the timeline was non-negotiable,'' Mundell said in a prepared statement. ``The people want redistricting reform now. The people have spoken. The question now is: Is the governor listening?''

The governor shifted his position as a new poll showed only 45 percent of state voters approve of the job he is doing, down from 60 percent approval in January.

The ballot measure is designed to spur more competitive congressional and legislative elections by removing the Legislature's power to set the boundaries of political districts. A panel of retired judges would be given the task.

Administration officials said Thursday that Schwarzenegger remains committed to immediate reform, but is also willing to work with Democratic leaders if they negotiate and don't stall.

``The governor wants political redistricting as soon as possible,'' his spokesman Vincent Sollitto said.

The ballot measure is one of four proposals Schwarzenegger vowed in January to submit to voters in a special election. But earlier this month, he withdrew his proposal to reform public employee pensions, saying it needed more work in the face of criticism from unions.

The governor has previously said he would not accept a measure that delayed the implementation of redistricting reform beyond the 2006 midterm elections. But on Wednesday, he told supporters he is open to having his proposal take effect after the 2010 U.S. Census, when the next reapportionment is scheduled.

Earlier this year, Mundell spent more than $100,000 to launch Californians for Fair Redistricting, a committee helping to collect signatures for the redistricting ballot measure. Nearly 600,000 voters' signatures are required to qualify the measure for the ballot, and organizers typically gather many additional signatures in case some are invalid.

The initiative was authored by Sacramento conservative political activist Ted Costa, and is similar to the legislative version of Schwarzenegger's proposal.

``Why would we wait to fix what's broken?'' Mundell said.

David M. Drucker, [phone]

david.drucker(at)dailybulletin.com