Two More Republicans Consider Senate Race

Even as Democratic Sen. Alan Cranston takes heart from his showing in recent polls, the field of Republicans who believe they can beat him next year continues to grow.

The latest to form exploratory committees for a possible race are Los Angeles County Supervisor Mike Antonovich and Rep. Ed Zschau, whose district includes part of the high-tech San Jose area.

That brings to 10 the number of prominent Republicans who say they are seriously considering the primary race, which is almost a year away.

The others are state Sen. William Campbell of Hacienda Heights; Rep. William Dannemeyer of Fullerton; state Sen. Ed Davis of Valencia; Rep. Bobbi Fiedler of Northridge; television commentator Bruce Herschensohn and economist Arthur Laffer, both of Los Angeles; Rep. Dan Lungren of Long Beach; and Assemblyman Robert Naylor of Menlo Park.

“It only proves what I have said all along--the (Republican) nomination is worth having,” said Newport Beach political consultant Stuart K. Spencer, whose clients include President Reagan.

In a recent Los Angeles Times Poll, 50% of the respondents had a favorable view of Cranston, while 23% had an unfavorable view.

Cranston had similar numbers in a California Poll earlier this year, and they are encouraging for a politician who was thought to have damaged his chances for reelection when he ran for President in 1984 and drew attention to his liberal voting record.

Some Republicans contend that Cranston’s unfavorable rating--known in politics as “negatives”--will go up when the race heats up and there is more attention on the senator’s voting record and his absenteeism during the presidential race.

Antonovich and Zschau (rhymes with “now”) bring interesting ingredients to the Republican brew.

Antonovich would easily be one of the most conservative candidates in the field. An enthusiastic supporter of President Reagan, Antonovich is opposed to abortion except when the mother’s life is in danger, and he supports a constitutional amendment calling for prayer in schools.

That puts Antonovich to the right of two other Southern California conservatives in the GOP Senate field--Davis and Fiedler--and could help Antonovich in a primary that is dominated by conservative voters.

Antonovich has hired the Sacramento consulting firm of Russo Watts and Associates, which managed the final three weeks of Gov. George Deukmejian’s 1982 gubernatorial campaign.

In Second Term

A 45-year-old bachelor, Antonovich recently was reelected to his second four-year term on the county Board of Supervisors.

That means he would still have the board job if he runs for the Senate unsuccessfully. It also means that real estate developers, who have been major contributors to Antonovich’s county races, can also be expected to help him with his Senate race, since they may have to deal with him on county matters again.

In a recent interview, Antonovich described Cranston as “very dangerous” and blamed the Democrat for everything from America’s troubles in Central America to the Cambodian genocide that followed U.S. withdrawal from Indochina in 1975.

Antonovich is also chairman of the California Republican Party and his consideration of a Senate race continues to anger some other Republicans, including several other Senate hopefuls, who charge that he is using his party position to unfair advantage in the Senate race.

More Moderate View

If Zschau decides to run for the Senate, he could be the least conservative candidate in the group.

Although he often supports Reagan on budgetary and other matters, Zschau recently deserted the President on two key House votes involving the MX missile, and opposed him in the first vote on aid to the Nicaraguan contras.

Zschau is pro-choice on abortion and is opposed to mandating prayer in schools.

“I’ve often said there will always be prayer in schools as long as there are math tests,” said Zschau, who has become known for his sense of humor.

First elected to the House in 1982, Zschau, 45, has a doctorate in business from Stanford University, where he was once a professor. He became a millionaire in the 1970s after founding System Industries, which makes computer memory discs.

Zschau says he will run for the Senate if he can raise $1 million by October. He hopes to raise much of that from high-tech entrepreneurs in the Silicon Valley and expects his exploratory effort to be headed by Palo Alto industrialist David Packard, a Reagan supporter who has also helped Cranston in the past.

Looking for a Name

Meanwhile, some Republican contributors and activists continue to long for a big name to put up against Cranston. Actor Charlton Heston and baseball commissioner Peter V. Ueberroth still say they have no plans to run, so the big name of the month now is former President Gerald R. Ford.

Rumors about a possible Ford Senate candidacy surfaced at a recent Los Angeles fund-raiser for Deukmejian.

Ford did not mention his political plans at the dinner, but his Los Angeles spokesman, Bob Barrett, said Monday that any Republicans hoping for a Ford candidacy will be disappointed.

“There is no way for me to put into words, short of using lots of profanity, how absurd that notion is,” Barrett said.