By Tim Seyfert

An 18-year-old Los Altos school board candidate received his first lesson in local politics last week after feeling pressure from the district to withdraw his candidacy.

Kevin Bella of Mountain View strongly considered dropping out of the running Aug. 12, after receiving a phone call from Los Altos School District Superintendent Marge Gratiot that afternoon, one day prior to the filing deadline.

Bella, who entered the race to inspire more teen political involvement, said that the superintendent told him his candidacy would force an election, costing the district $30,000.

Before Bella filed his papers, there were only two candidates for the two-seat race. Bella said Gratiot also suggested the district might have to drop a teacher or a program to compensate, citing the art docent program Bella’s mother volunteers for as an example.

“It surprised the hell out of me,” Bella said last week. “She definitely chose her words carefully and knew what buttons to push.”

Gratiot meanwhile told the Town Crier that she did not pressure Bella to withdraw and meant no threat, but wanted to inform the young candidate about the financial impact of his candidacy.

“I told him that if he was a serious candidate, he should come in and get a budget and some necessary background,” she said. “But that if he were not a serious candidate, he should be aware that his running would cost the district a substantial amount of money that it might not otherwise incur. “

Gratiot’s concerns over Bella’s candidacy’s sparking a costly election became moot last week when a fourth candidate, Albert Hill, 55, entered the race just before the 5 p.m. deadline. Bella said it was that development that led to his decision to stay in the running.

“(After the phone call) I had pretty much decided on withdrawing that day,” he said. “Then it became a four-person race. So even if I would have gone down and withdrawn, I would no longer be saving the district money. That’s when I changed my mind.”

Gratiot said Bella’s age is not an issue, but she still has reservations whether the recent Mountain View High School grad would be able to adequately carry out the duties of the post.

“He will be attending college out of town next year and may not have the time available to fulfill the responsibilities of the office,” she said.

Bella plans to start the University of California at Davis in the fall, but said he would commute back to the area to attend the semimonthly school board meetings, if elected.

Since local publications began reporting on Bella’s phone conversation with the superintendent, the teen said he’s been swarmed with phone calls.

The nature of these calls range from district parents criticizing Gratiot to supporters urging him to stay in the race (including some offering to pledge money), as well as two political consultants proposing to run his campaign.

“The whole point of this was to give voters a choice as to who was running their schools,” Bella said. “Now they have four and I’m in it until the end.”

Gratiot told the TownCrier Monday that she regrets having made the phone call and plans on writing a letter of apology to Bella, saying, “although my motive seemed good at the time, it was a very dumb thing for me to have done, and I wish I hadn’t.”