Democrats’ Plan to Hold Assembly: M-O-N-E-Y

SACRAMENTO —  To Assembly Speaker Willie Brown, protecting the Democrats’ majority in the Legislature’s lower house in this year’s elections is primarily a matter of money.

The Democrats hold a 46-33 voting edge over the GOP in the Assembly, with one vacancy, but Republicans have high hopes of making some gains this year. They have a well-financed, incumbent governor heading their ticket, and they believe that they can capitalize on the confirmation election of Chief Justice of California Rose Elizabeth Bird to put Democrats on the defensive.

So well-heeled is Gov. George Deukmejian’s campaign, in fact, that Brown (D-San Francisco) expects the governor to take the unusual step of funneling some of his campaign money to other GOP candidates.

“At some point, he (the governor) is going to run out of things to spend that money on for himself,” Brown said in a recent interview. “He is going to turn around and start spending it against Assembly Democrats and Senate Democrats.

‘About $3 Million Short’

“We’ve got to be in a position to make the contests fair. We’ve got to be able to match those dollars. . . . I’m told we will probably need $5 million to run our campaigns. That means I am about $3 million short.”

Deukmejian has raised more than $7 million so far in his quest for reelection. Brown has so far collected less than $2 million for legislative campaigns. Two years ago, he spent a total of $3 million on electing Democrats to the Assembly. All 80 seats are at stake in this year’s elections.

Asked about Brown’s prediction, Larry Thomas, the governor’s campaign director, said: “I frankly don’t want to rule out that we might offer some monetary assistance, but Willie Brown has never shared his campaign strategy with us in advance. I intend to return the favor.”

For Deukmejian’s three most recent predecessors--Edmund G. Brown Jr., Ronald Reagan and Edmund G. Brown Sr.--assistance to legislative candidates of their own parties consisted of little more than speaking at fund-raising dinners. Direct contributions to candidates were virtually unheard of.

Assembly Republican Leader Pat Nolan of Glendale said he was unaware of any potential Deukmejian financial help for GOP candidates.

“Willie (Brown) certainly has a pipeline to the governor that I don’t have,” he said. “The governor has to be sure of his own reelection first. But if we get that kind of help, it would be great.

“I’d like to spend about three-quarters as much as Willie spends,” Nolan added. “If we did that, we’d be the majority party.”

The Republican leader has a several-seats-per-election-year strategy under which the GOP would gain by 1990 the eight seats it needs to become the majority party--the party in position to draw new legislative district lines to its advantage in the reapportionment that will follow the 1990 Census.

Expected Issues

Nolan said the Republican National Committee will furnish both financial aid and staffing to help Republicans win control of the Assembly, although he said it was uncertain how much money the national party actually will provide.

While most of the contests are expected to revolve mostly around local issues, the Supreme Court chief justice’s confirmation and toxic-waste cleanup will be showing up frequently as litmus tests for candidates. The court issue is, of course, ostensibly nonpartisan, but Republicans are all but unanimous in their opposition to Chief Justice Bird, and they believe it will be politically costly for any Democrat to either support her or not take a stand on the matter.

Democrats, meanwhile, plan to attack Deukmejian and GOP legislators on their environmental records. Specifically, they will attempt to paint the governor and his fellow Republicans as unwilling to rapidly clean up toxic waste dumps.

The bulk of Assembly campaign funds and effort will be concentrated on 11 Assembly districts where the incumbent is running for higher office or retiring.

Those leaving include Assemblywoman Jean M. Duffy (D-Citrus Heights), who is retiring; Assemblymen Gray Davis (D-Los Angeles) and Alister McAlister (D-Fremont), who are running for state controller; Wally Herger (R-Rio Oso) and Ernie Konnyu (R-Saratoga), who are seeking seats in Congress.

Also leaving the lower house will be Robert W. Naylor (R-Menlo Park), who is running for U.S. Senate; Louis J. Papan (D-Millbrae) and Don Rogers (R-Bakersfield), who are running for state Senate; Richard Robinson (D-Garden Grove), running for Congress; Don A. Sebastiani (R-Sonoma), running for controller, and Frank Vicencia (D-Bellflower), retiring.

A 12th open seat, previously held by Assemblyman Richard Alatorre (D-Los Angeles), now a Los Angeles city councilman, is up for grabs at an April 8 special election with a June 3 runoff to follow, if necessary.

For most Assembly seats, particularly where incumbents are running, there will be no serious fights in the June 3 primary election; the biggest battles will take place in the Nov. 4 general election.

But several rugged primary races are taking shape. One of the liveliest appears to be in the heavily Democratic 54th Assembly District in southeastern Los Angeles County, which encompasses Compton, Bellflower, Lakewood, Paramount and part of Long Beach. With six-term veteran Vicencia retiring, nine Democrats are seeking the party’s nomination.

Will Cost Money

This primary is a source of concern for Speaker Brown and other top Democrats, because it will cost them money they would rather spend fighting Republicans.

One of the candidates is Edward K. Waters, 30, the son of Maxine Waters, assemblywoman from the neighboring 48th District in Los Angeles, and one of Brown’s top political lieutenants. Edward Waters has been endorsed by Brown in the primary.

Another prominent candidate is Willard Murray, on leave as an aide to Rep. Mervyn M. Dymally (D-Calif.), who has his boss’ backing and is also drawing support from the West Los Angeles political organization of Reps. Howard L. Berman and Henry A. Waxman. Also in the running are several well-known present and former local officials, including former Compton Mayor Doris Davis; Bellflower school board member Larry Ward; Bellflower City Councilman Ray O’Neal, and Kent A. Spieller, a veteran political strategist and fund raiser.

Another key primary is in the 43rd District, where attorney Terry Friedman, also backed by the the Berman-Waxman coalition, is considered to be the leading candidate to replace Davis. Also seeking the Democratic nomination are attorneys Rosemary Woodlock and Bruce Margolin, both of whom have lost previous races for the Legislature. The 43rd District includes Studio City, Encino, Sherman Oaks and a large chunk of the Westside.

Race for Papan Seat

In Northern California’s 19th District, San Mateo County Supervisor Jackie Speier will face Daly City Councilman Michael Nevin for the Democratic nomination to replace Papan.

On the Republican side, in the San Joaquin Valley’s 33rd District, Kern County Supervisor Trice Harvey is opposed by Anna K. Allen, who describes herself as a taxpayers’ advocate, for the GOP nomination to replace Rogers.

The Democrats say they believe they can win Sebastiani’s GOP seat and hold the seats being vacated by Davis, McAlister, Papan and Vicencia. In Sebastiani’s 8th District, which includes parts of Sonoma, Napa, Lake and Solano counties, Democrat Mary Jadiker ran a strong race on her own in 1984 and is expected to get a lot of party help this time.

The Republicans contend that they have a good chance at winning the seats being vacated by Democrats Robinson in Orange County and Duffy in the Sacramento area. The margins of victory were very thin for both seats in 1984--only 256 votes in Robinson’s case. GOP strategists say they expect to retain the seats being vacated by Herger, Konnyu, Naylor and Rogers.

Lost by a Whisker

In Orange County’s 72nd District, Republican Richard E. Longshore, after losing by a whisker to Robinson in 1984, has seemingly been campaigning ever since. The Democrats are banking on Santa Ana Mayor Daniel E. Griset to keep the district in their column.

In Duffy’s 5th District, which includes parts of Sacramento and Placer counties, her retirement was believed to have been prompted in part by the prospect of another battle with Republican developer Tim Leslie, who ran a close race in 1984. Leslie, as expected, is running again.

The GOP also has targeted for the general election campaigns six other seats now held by Assemblymen Steve Clute (D-Riverside); Richard Katz (D-Sepulveda); Lucy Killea (D-San Diego); Jack O’Connell (D-Carpinteria); Steve Peace (D-Chula Vista), and Sally Tanner (D-El Monte).

For the fall offensive, the Democrats have targeted Assemblyman William J. Filante (R-Greenbrae) and Wayne Grisham (R-Norwalk).

Also contributing to this story was Times staff writer Mark Gladstone.