GOP’s Hurtt Sweeps to O.C. Senate Seat Win

Republican Rob Hurtt, a wealthy Garden Grove businessman who used his own money to finance his first bid for public office, easily won a special election Tuesday to fill a vacancy in the state Senate.

Largely because of his personal fortune, Hurtt was unopposed by any other Republican in the campaign to replace former state Sen. Ed Royce (R-Anaheim), who was elected to Congress last November, in the 32nd District.

As a result, Hurtt, 48, gained the unified backing of Orange County’s powerful Republican Party and was able to swamp his six little-known challengers.

In a victory speech less than two hours after the polls closed, the conservative candidate thanked a room filled with supporters and said he was already setting his sights on his first reelection battle next year, when Democrats have vowed he will face more serious opposition.

“I feel great, I’m ready to go to work immediately,” said Hurtt. “I look forward to setting up a new district office, I have lots of new ideas.”

State Sen. John R. Lewis (R-Orange), who campaigned for Hurtt, said he also hopes the lopsided victory gives pause to any potential opponents next year. “I’m stunned by the magnitude of the victory,” said Lewis. “This is a big win.”

Hurtt had more than eight times the votes of his nearest competitor and he easily exceeded the 50% support he needed to avoid a runoff election. If none of the candidates received more than 50% of the vote Tuesday, a general election would have been held April 27 between the top vote-getters in each party.

The victory means that Hurtt could be sworn into the Senate as soon as the secretary of state’s office validates the election results. Hurtt campaign aides predicted that could be as early as Monday.

Democrat Linda K. Rigney, a teacher’s assistant from Garden Grove, finished second in the race ahead of three other Democrats--Ken LeBlanc of Huntington Beach, Rick Foster of Anaheim and Wayman Nelson of Garden Grove.

Richard Newhouse of Garden Grove also appeared on the ballot for the Libertarian Party and David Porter represented the Peace and Freedom Party.

Special elections are traditionally marked by low voter interest, and without a competitive matchup the turnout in Tuesday’s race was 14%.

Hurtt, who is backed by leaders of the state’s religious right organizations and is a major contributor to their candidates and causes, is owner of Container Supply Co. in Garden Grove, a manufacturing business started by the candidate’s grandfather almost 40 years ago.

Hurtt said his firsthand experience with the crippling problems facing California businesses inspired him to seek office. Tuesday night, he promised his top priority in Sacramento will be to fight the regulation and taxes that he blames for driving many companies out of the state.

Hurtt also said during the campaign that he agrees with the state’s religious right organizations on many of their conservative political views regarding abortion, pornography and gay rights. But he insisted that his focus in Sacramento will be on the economy and the business climate, not controversial social issues.

Tuesday’s vote in Orange County was one of four special elections held throughout California to fill three vacancies in the state Senate and one in the Assembly.

The other Senate races included one in the Antelope Valley, where 10 candidates were competing, and another race in Vallejo. The only Assembly seat up for grabs is in a heavily Democratic district centered in Fresno.

Without complete returns, no clear-cut winners emerged in those races, but indications were that runoffs next month are likely.

Orange County’s 32nd Senate District includes the cities of Santa Ana, Garden Grove, Stanton and Fullerton as well as parts of Anaheim and other communities. But the campaign generated such little spark that most residents in those cities were probably unaware the election was taking place.

Hurtt was expected to spend more than $200,000 in the race, most of it from his own pocket. Last year, he was one of California’s biggest contributors to Republican causes, donating more than $500,000.

The unique rules of a special election even enhanced the advantage Hurtt had with his personal bankroll. Unlike regularly scheduled campaigns, state election laws limit individual contributors to just $1,000 each in a special election.

As a result, several experts said Hurtt’s bank account cleared the race of any big-name opponents. But Republican conservatives still boasted that the election was evidence the party’s right wing has a solid control on politics in Orange County.

“This is a landslide victory in the making,” said Thomas A. Fuentes, chairman of the county’s Republican Party. “It demonstrates the solid strength of the conservative message in this county.”

Leaders of the county’s moderate Republican organizations--who have railed against conservative domination of the local elected offices--had promised to find an opponent to challenge Hurtt. But city council members and other prospective candidates interviewed by the moderate recruiters all balked at the idea of taking on such a formidable challenge.

Democratic leaders--buoyed by signs in the November elections that the GOP grip might be loosening--also talked about launching a major effort to win Royce’s former seat so they might add another Democrat to the party caucus in Sacramento.

But in the end, the four Democrats who entered the race were hardly known and none had experience in elected office. They each lacked the political power to win endorsements from their own party or from major labor groups and elected Democratic leaders. And none were able to scare off competitors so the Democratic vote would not be splintered.

The outcome was surprising to many political observers who predicted several better-known candidates would run--especially since it is so rare for a race to be held with no incumbent and a fairly evenly divided electorate (Republicans have just a 1% edge over Democrats among registered voters in the district).

Times staff writer Stacy Wong and Timothy Chou contributed to this story.

FINAL ELECTION RETURNS

State Senate, 32nd District

100% Precincts Reporting Votes % Rob Hurtt (R) 26,703 77.2 Linda K. Rigney (D) 3,909 11.3 Ken LeBlanc (D) 1,954 5.6 Rick Foster (D) 1,141 3.3 Richard Newhouse (L) 648 1.9 David Porter (P&F;) 246 0.7

Elected candidate is in bold type.