When a candidate in a political race has virtually no endorsements and has raised fewer funds than the competition, it often becomes imperative to gain attention through other, often riskier means.

Robert Zirgulis admittedly finds himself in all of the above categories, and with less than two weeks to go before the electorate decides who will occupy the two open seats on the Culver City City Council, Zirgulis finds himself as the local version of the Greek god Sisyphus — waging an uphill battle to win the April 13 general election.

The candidate, a Culver City Unified School District substitute teacher, is a former realtor and self-described environmentalist who has declared himself an outsider who is conducting a bare-bones campaign against entrenched political interests.

“I’m the only one who is asking the tough questions in this race,” Zirgulis said recently in an interview in downtown Culver City. With City Hall as the backdrop for the fourth installment of interviews with this year’s city council contenders, Zirgulis expounded on his claim of being the only independent candidate and sketched out his signature campaign themes in his typical outspoken style.

Zirgulis says his unsuccessful run for a seat on the CCUSD school board last November convinced him to run a “guerilla marketing campaign” this time, due to the fact that his resources are limited.

Like all of the candidates running for office, Zirgulis says the $6 million budget shortfall is the city’s primary concern. The candidate also disapproves of the number of outside contractors and says he would lobby to reduce the number of contracts awarded.

 “It’s an example of the waste in the city,” he said.

Zirgulis says he has chosen to spotlight what he and others consider the preponderance of red-light traffic cameras, which are installed at a variety of intersections throughout Culver City, because they are unfair and what he calls a symptom of “the corruption in the city.”

Asked to explain that charge, Zirgulis instead talked about the breakdown in revenue derived from red-light camera violations.

“Three hundred of the $446 fine for running a red light goes to state and county courts, and the majority of the remainder is paid to a company called Redflex Traffic Systems. The city doesn’t hardly make anything from these red-light cameras,” he said. “I’m against blatantly running red lights, but I’m in the trenches every day, protesting these cameras every day, and I see how people are getting these tickets.”

“In the trenches” is what the substitute teacher calls his frequent protests at different intersections.

“Basically, if (a motorist) is one foot over the line, they get a ticket. This is a symbol of the total unfairness of these cameras,” he claimed.

Some residents agree with the council candidate about the traffic cameras. David Bjelajac shares Zirgulis’ distaste for the cameras and questions their legitimacy.

“I wonder if they really are for red-light runners or for profits,” Bjelajac wrote to the News in a letter to the editor last month. “I know nothing about (Zirgulis), but I fully support him on this issue.”

The fines that are collected from the traffic cameras go into two city-controlled funds, said Lt. Milton McKinnon of the Culver City Police Department.

“The citation fee is approximately $100, but the courts always add on additional fees,” explained McKinnon, who is in charge of the enforcement of the red-light cameras. “The fees are set by the state Legislature, so police departments don’t get to choose how much money (cities) get from the citations.”

McKinnon said the police department has no control over the funds, and Red Flex charges a flat fee for processing the infractions.

Zirgulis claims there are studies that show a 20% increase in rear-end collisions where red light cameras are installed. When questioned about the studies, Zirgulis admitted he had not seen them.

According to McKinnon, there has been no noticeable increase in rear-end accidents since the cameras were installed approximately 20 years ago.

During the third week of March, Zirgulis traveled to the state’s capital to continue his campaign against the red-light cameras.

“This shows that I’m willing to go to Sacramento to lobby for the people of Culver City,” he said.

Zirgulis disagrees with the suggestion that leaving the city for a week during an admittedly uphill political campaign was an unconventional move.

“I think that I was very effective in Sacramento. If anything, it shows how committed I am to the voters of Culver City,” he countered.

Another staple of Zirgulis’ campaign is his support of what he calls “environmentally safe” oil drilling. He is also aware that this is an unpopular position among a large percentage of the city’s electorate, due to Culver City’s lawsuits against oil and gas company Plains Exploration Production regarding an environmental impact report and land use regulation for oil exploration in neighboring Baldwin Hills.

“There are a lot of anti-oil people who are depriving the city of millions of dollars in revenue and oil royalties from residents who are entitled to them,” he said.

If he is elected in April, Zirgulis has publicly promised to secure $3 million from oil drilling revenues for the school district, and has publicly stated if he is unsuccessful, he would not seek re-election. Asked how he would accomplish this when the current council unanimously voted to enact a ban on oil drilling until this summer, Zirgulis said he would count on the residents to help sway his potential colleagues.

“I’m going to focus the light on (the benefits of receiving oil revenues), and the public is going to persuade (the council),” Zirgulis predicted.

Culver City City Attorney Carol Schwab told the News that the city’s ability to give the school district money derived from any source is not as easy as it sounds

        “If the city council could determine that (a monetary donation) was for a public purpose, that might be a possibility,” she said.

In almost all cases, Schwab said the onus would be on the party soliciting the money for an entity unrelated to the city to convince the council of the merits of the request.

“You would have to make a very compelling case that it would have to be for a public purpose,” the city attorney noted. “It would have to be thorough and specific, and we’d have to make a finding based on a factual basis.”

Zirgulis said settling the lawsuits would be the wisest course of action.

“We’ve spent way too much money on these lawsuits,” he said.

The candidate has frequently talked about political machines operating in Culver City, which he says distort the political process. When questioned how the supposed machines have influenced the current campaign, he offered a Wikipedia definition of a political machine, which states, “A political machine is a disciplined political organization in which an authoritative boss or small group commands the -support of a corps of supporters (usually campaign workers), who receive rewards for their efforts.”

The candidate also brought up the removal last year of Culver Crest resident Dee Seehusen by the council from the city’s Landlord and Tenant Mediation Board. Seehusen made what Culver City’s governing board and many of her fellow residents consider highly inflammatory and homophobic remarks following last year’s CCUSD school board election, where she implied that then-candidates Karlo Silbiger and Kathy Paspalis might not have won had they disclosed their sexual preference prior to the election.

Zirgulis staunchly objected to Seehusen’s dismissal, stating that her First Amendment rights were violated, and remains unapologetic for his stance.

“She did not say anything against gay people in her letter,” he argued. Asked if he considered Seehusen’s statements to be a potential legal liability as the council indicated it had, Zirgulis dismissed the council’s explanation as “political correctness.”

Regarding future commercial development, Zirgulis said he is in favor of maintaining Culver City’s “small-town outlook.” When pressed to explain that concept in greater detail, the substitute teacher did not offer any specifics.

With time winding down to election day, Zirgulis is banking on connecting with voters based on his positions and his lack of association with the local political establishment. “I’m an outsider,” he repeated. “I’m going to be looking out for their interests.

“I know that I’m outspoken and some people don’t like that, but I have nothing to lose in this campaign.”