Local News in Brief : McCarthy Sees Only 2% Chance He’ll Run for Different Post

Lt. Gov. Leo McCarthy said Tuesday that he has all but eliminated himself as a candidate for governor or the U.S. Senate in 1986.

McCarthy estimated that there was only a “2% chance” he would scrap his plans to run for reelection in favor of seeking another political office. He disclosed his decision in an interview in Sherman Oaks after speaking with a group of exporters who belong to the Valley International Trade Assn.

Later in the day, McCarthy reiterated his intentions after he met with students at California State University, Northridge. “I’m strongly inclined to seek reelection as lieutenant governor,” he said, adding that the “odds are 20-to-1” in favor of his reelection bid in 1986.

McCarthy, 54, has been among the prominent Democrats mentioned as a possible challenger to Gov. George Deukmejian, whose term also ends in two years. Other Democrats eyeing the governor’s post are Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley and state Sen. John Garamendi (D-Walnut Grove), who unsuccessfully challenged Bradley in the Democratic primary when the mayor ran in 1982.