Lockyer Won’t Run for Governor

SACRAMENTO —  Despite a deep personal ambition to become governor and $11 million backing him up, Atty. Gen. Bill Lockyer announced Thursday that he would not challenge Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger next year and instead would run for state treasurer.

Lockyer’s decision opens the field for other Democrats to challenge the Republican governor -- if he seeks reelection -- without a well-funded and well-known challenger who could drain their coffers in a bitter primary battle.

Lockyer said he did not want to face the inevitably nasty campaign it would take to unseat Schwarzenegger, who despite recent policy setbacks and falling public-opinion ratings is still considered formidable.

A poll released Thursday by the Public Policy Institute of California found that only 45% of likely voters approved of Schwarzenegger’s job performance -- a rating equal to that of former Gov. Gray Davis in his darkest days.

In a two-page statement laced with personal observations and political theory, Lockyer called California politics “obscene” and lamented the “permanent campaign” that creates partisan bickering at every turn.

“I’ve decided not to spend the next 10 years of my life in partisan hand-to-hand combat,” said Lockyer, considered one of the keener political minds in Sacramento. “Unfortunately, that kind of conflict seems inextricably woven into ... our political culture.”

He also said he wanted to spend more time with his wife and two children.

Just three months ago, Lockyer wrote to California Democrats telling them that governor was “the job I want” and dismissing speculation that he would run for some other office.

In an interview Thursday, Lockyer described Schwarzenegger as “on the mat” and beatable next year, but said he “wouldn’t run for governor even if they appointed me. I was a partisan gladiator for 30 years. I’m fed up with that. I don’t think anyone can escape that in the current political environment.”

State Treasurer Phil Angelides, former head of the state Democratic Party, has launched a gubernatorial campaign. State Controller Steve Westly, who made a fortune in the Silicon Valley, has opened an exploratory committee and hired a pollster and a campaign manager.

Schwarzenegger is by no means dead as a potential candidate, said Elizabeth Garrett, director of the USC/Caltech Center for the Study of Law and Politics. He has raised more money than any other California politician and has an experienced campaign staff, a telegenic personality and higher name recognition than almost anyone else in the world, she said.

Schwarzenegger would go into the gubernatorial race “in a very strong position,” she said.

Westly said Schwarzenegger would be a tough opponent, and he didn’t rule out a potentially nasty fight during the primary against Angelides.

“Campaigning is a tough thing,” Westly said, “but we’re Democrats. We like elections, not coronations.”

An ebullient Angelides held a news conference to thank Lockyer and say he wanted to unite the Democratic Party against Schwarzenegger.

“I continue to view myself as the underdog against this governor,” he said. “This is going to be an uphill climb. I am not cocky. I do not in any sense have the view that I am the front-runner in this race.”

If Lockyer wins the Democratic primary for treasurer, as expected, he could face GOP candidate Bill Simon, a financier and multimillionaire who narrowly lost the governor’s race to Davis in 2002. Other Republicans interested in the job include Assemblyman Keith Richman of Northridge and Claude Parrish, a member of the State Board of Equalization.

Lockyer phoned lawmakers Thursday to tell them his news; some of them had already said they wanted the treasurer’s job. Within a few hours, state Sen. Joe Dunn (D-Santa Ana) announced that he would withdraw from the race for treasurer, saying he and Lockyer “had worked too hard together ... to be adversaries at this time in our careers.”

Bill Carrick, Lockyer’s longtime political consultant, said he believed that Lockyer could beat Schwarzenegger. “Nobody thinks it’s a slam dunk, but in the last months [Schwarzenegger has] demonstrated an enormous vulnerability,” Carrick said.

State Republican Party spokeswoman Karen Hanretty said Lockyer had damaged his standing among Democrats and “realized he would have a very difficult time beating Phil.”

Lockyer has angered fellow Democrats over the last few years, notably by admitting that he voted for Schwarzenegger in the 2003 recall election.