Migden loses her Senate seat

For the first time in a dozen years, California voters Tuesday ousted a sitting legislator in a primary election, and Los Angeles area voters refused to extend Mervyn Dymally’s 46-year political career.

The election results set the stage for several serious Republican-versus-Democrat clashes for legislative seats in November’s general election.

San Francisco and Marin County Democrats threw state Sen. Carole Migden out of office when they chose her challenger, Assemblyman Mark Leno (D-San Francisco), by a wide margin. Migden could have been reelected to another four-year term, but Leno will face Republican unknown Sashi McEntee in November to represent the liberal 3rd Senate District.

Legislators rarely challenge colleagues of their own party, but many troubles have dogged Migden this past year, including a $350,000 fine for campaign finance violations and probation for reckless driving. Voters last ousted an incumbent in a primary election in 1996, when Republican Brian Setencich of Fresno was punished for working with Democrats to briefly attain the Assembly’s top post.

Democratic voters Tuesday also rejected the bid of Assemblyman Dymally of Compton to move to the state Senate. With a 44% to 35% vote, they chose former Assemblyman Rod Wright to run against Republican Lydia Gutierrez in November to represent the 25th Senate District, which includes San Pedro and Inglewood. Democratic voters dominate the district, so Wright is practically guaranteed a victory.

Business interests including apartment owners, Sempra Energy and the Philip Morris tobacco company invested heavily in advertising and phone calls to voters on Wright’s behalf. The Alliance for California’s Tomorrow, a business coalition, spent nearly $1 million supporting Wright and $200,000 opposing Dymally.

Wright said he was proud of his business and labor support, as well as the endorsements of every mayor in the district.

“I don’t know that Merv necessarily made it his business to reach out to local guys,” he said.

Dymally, 82, has already served in both houses of the Legislature, as lieutenant governor and in Congress. He was first elected to the Assembly in 1962.

Though 100 of 120 legislative districts will be up for grabs in November, most are so dominated by either Democrats or Republicans that the winners are a foregone conclusion once the primary contests are settled. But a few districts that are more narrowly divided still offer true competition.

The 80th Assembly District covers Imperial County and part of Riverside County and is now represented by Republican Bonnie Garcia of Cathedral City. But there are slightly more Democratic than Republican voters in the district, and the Democratic Par- ty is expected to invest heavily in Manuel Victor Perez, who bested three other candidates Tuesday.

A member of the Coachella Valley Unified School District board, Perez will face Republican Gary Jeandron, a former Palm Springs police chief, in November.

Another tossup is the race to replace Assemblywoman Shirley Horton (R-Chula Vista) in an inland San Diego County district that has more registered Democratic voters than Republicans. Attorney and community college district President Marty Block beat three other Democrats for his party’s nomination. He now squares off against Republican John McCann, a Chula Vista city councilman.

Democratic voters in the 78th Assembly District chose Block over more moderate Democrat Auday Arabo, a former prosecutor, and teacher Maxine Sherard, who lost despite nearly $200,000 in support from insurers, dentists and other groups seeking laws to curb lawsuits.

The most contested legislative race in November is likely to be for a Senate seat covering parts of Ventura, Santa Barbara and Los Angeles counties. But there was no excitement Tuesday.

Democratic candidate Hannah-Beth Jackson and Republican candidate Tony Strickland, both of whom left the Assembly in 2004, ran unopposed in the primary. The 19th Senate District is almost evenly split between Republican and Democratic voters, but neither candidate is a centrist in the mold of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

“Do they want a right-winger who won’t support [Gov.] Arnold Schwarzenegger or do they want a left-winger who won’t support Arnold Schwarzenegger?” said Allan Hoffenblum, publisher of the California Target Book, which tracks legislative and congressional races. “It’s going to be a nasty campaign.”

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nancy.vogel@latimes.com