Advocates for free preschool for the state's 4-year-olds are putting to use some of the same skills they say youngsters learn in such programs: cooperating with others and persevering despite defeat.

Less than a month after a proposed ballot initiative asking voters to pay for preschool by increasing commercial property taxes was rescinded by its backers, advocates for universal preschool and four sympathetic legislators met Wednesday in the Capitol to reaffirm their commitment to the cause.

They examined new bipartisan polling data showing California voters support extending public education to include 4-year-olds, and they discussed the benefits preschool offers to children and society.

They also raised, but did not answer, questions about implementing their vision: How will universal preschool be funded? Will the program come about through legislation or the ballot box?

"The fact that Californians support universal preschool is not a surprise to me," said Assemblyman Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, who has sponsored legislation - shelved until next year - that calls for universal preschool without identifying a funding source.

The question, he said, is how to gain political support in the midst of tight budget times.

Sponsors of the initiative that was removed from November's ballot - Hollywood director Rob Reiner and the California Teachers Association - were not at Wednesday's meeting. Advocates at the meeting declined to talk openly about why the proposed initiative may have collapsed.

However, they hinted at one reason when they discussed the need for diverging interest groups to cooperate if future attempts at universal preschool are to succeed.

On that point, they echoed the view of observers who have said that the Reiner-CTA initiative was too narrow in its approach because it did not include enough input from child-care providers.

Reiner and Barbara Kerr, president of the CTA, said earlier this month that they decided not to go forward with their measure because the November ballot would be too crowded with complex initiatives.

Yet observers say that a lack of support from both conservative and liberal groups was a likely cause for the measure's disintegration. Anti-tax groups voiced opposition to the measure and Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said it would be bad for the economy. And, said Bruce Fuller, a professor of education and public policy at the University of California, Berkeley, the measure faced "fractured support on the political left."

In a telephone interview, Fuller said he supports expanding preschool to more children. But he ticked off several criticisms of the proposals for universal preschool:

* The potential for harming existing preschool programs.

* The possibility of losing teachers who are bilingual or ethnic minorities because of requirements calling for them to receive more education.

* A preference in many communities for preschools tied to churches and family homes - rather than school districts.

* The risk of widening the achievement gaps between socioeconomic classes by immediately including all children - instead of focusing on the neediest.

Elizabeth Sholes, public policy coordinator for the advocacy arm of the California Council of Churches, which supports faith-based social services, said her group had concerns about the proposed ballot initiative but feels solutions are under way.

"We've come together in post-initiative discussions in ways that have been very positive," Sholes said. "Next time we do this, we will all be at the table ... Even though it's a slower and more wieldy process, it produces better results."