Attorney general debate: Candidates set for noon face-off

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The candidates competing to become the state’s next attorney general meet Tuesday at noon on the campus of UC Davis for their first — and perhaps only — debate.

Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee and San Francisco district attorney, will try to persuade California voters to side with her despite her disagreement with the majority of voters on a key crime-and-punishment issue, the death penalty.

Harris has opposed the use of the death penalty in San Francisco cases and says she would appeal death-penalty cases if elected attorney general.

Steve Cooley, the Republican nominee and Los Angeles district attorney, has argued that he represents the California mainstream and that Harris is too extreme to serve as attorney general. He supports capital punishment.

Cooley has tradition on his side: All attorneys general in California for the last 160 years have been, like Cooley, white men. Harris, who is African American, is seeking to become the first woman and first minority elected to the post. The job is now held by Democrat Jerry Brown, who is running for governor.

Despite the gender distinctions and the Bay Area versus Southern California competition that the race represents, it has been a low-key affair so far, overwhelmed by the media attention and paid advertisements generated by competitive U.S. Senate and governor races and several ballot measures before voters on Nov. 2.

Live coverage of the debate is available here.

-- Cathleen Decker in Los Angeles