California Elections : Clute Challenged by Political Newcomer : GOP Assembly Candidate Thinks District Is Ready for a Conservative

On doorsteps throughout the sprawling 68th Assembly District, a slim, freckled young man has been asking, “Are there any unregistered Republicans in the house?”

He is political newcomer Matt Webb, a 28-year-old civil engineer from Moreno Valley who is hoping to unseat Assemblyman Steve Clute (D-Riverside) in his bid for a third term in office.

“The kid,” as some call him, is banking on the conservative leanings of the thousands of young families who have moved to this historically Democratic district in recent years to put him over the top on election day, Nov. 4.

To win them over, Webb has waged a vigorous registration drive and door-to-door campaign to put himself forward as a hard-line conservative, opposed to abortion and in favor of the death penalty, lower taxes and the defeat of California Chief Justice Rose Elizabeth Bird.

That stance, combined with the district’s changing political complexion and Webb’s ability to raise funds on his own have earned him the support of Republican leaders who have targeted Clute, a former Navy pilot, for defeat.

“We think Matt Webb has one of the four or five best chances to beat an incumbent Democrat,” said William Saracino, chief of staff for the Assembly Republican Caucus and top aide to Assembly Minority Leader Pat Nolan. “And Clute is on our A-No.-1 target list.”

But Clute, 38, a former manager of the Rialto Airport, smiles confidently and says he is not all that worried about widespread predictions that the race is going to be very close.

Yet the two-term incumbent has launched his own all-out registration drive and door-to-door campaign and wrapped himself in conservative colors by aligning himself with Gov. George Deukmejian. A “photo album” shown to potential voters on the campaign trail contains a photograph of Clute and the Republican governor smiling together at a table.

Pounding the pavement is not easy in a 180-mile-wide district that extends from Riverside all the way to the Colorado River.

So far, the Republicans seem to have made the biggest gains.

In the past nine months, the number of registered Republicans in the district has risen from 57,118, or 35% of all registered voters, to 64,916, or 37.5%, according to the county registrar of voters.

By comparison, in the same period, the number of registered Democrats changed from 88,271, or 54% of all registered voters, to 90,735, or 52%.

Because Republicans are generally more likely to vote, the numbers make this a marginal district. The 52% Democratic registration is among the lowest in the state for a district represented by a Democrat.

Republicans who regard Clute as vulnerable note that his 1984 opponent, Riverside Police Lt. Gil Olivarria--who was criticized for not walking enough precincts--lost by just 6,000 of the 113,290 votes cast, despite being outspent by Clute $464,771 to $291,066.

On the campaign trail, however, Webb, who is a member of the family that owns the civil engineering firm of Albert A. Webb Associates of Riverside, has his own problems, including inexperience, a lack of name recognition--and his youthful appearance.

“It is a concern,” said Ethel Silver, 60, a local Republican consultant. “But people who talk to him, after a few sentences, realize that he has his act together and is not a shy little kid.”

Clute, on the other hand, is a tall, good-looking man whose position as chairman of the Committee on Veterans Affairs and moderate stance on most issues has put him in good stead with many of the politically active conservative Democrats and 90,000 veterans who reside in Riverside County.

In addition, Clute has mustered substantial support from women and senior citizens.

To these constituents Clute has been handing out brochures featuring candy and cake recipes concocted by his wife, Pam, a professor of mathematics at the University of California, Riverside.

“We hope you’ll enjoy making and eating these treats,” say the brochures, which show a photograph of the couple walking arm-in-arm through the campus. “Remember, your vote on Nov. 4 does make a difference!”

Last week, the friendly candy-and-cake campaign took a nasty turn when Webb mailed letters labeling Clute as a “pro-abortionist” to more than 75 clergy in the Riverside area.

The attack drew a quick response from Clute, who said the charge was based on “distortion and lies.”

In an interview, Clute said: “A woman’s body is her own and it is not up to me or anyone else to dictate to her . . . through moral values or legislation . . . what she should do with it--I guess that falls into the pro-choice realm.”

Webb says he is strongly opposed to any form of abortion except in certain circumstances, such as rape and incest.

A major theme of Webb’s campaign has been Clute’s close ties to Assembly Speaker Willie Brown (D-San Francisco) and the Assembly Democrats, who channeled large amounts of money into Clute’s two previous campaigns.

“Our assemblyman should not be beholden to a power broker in Sacramento,” said Webb, walking a middle-class neighborhood in Riverside. “But Clute has spent the last four years in Sacramento doing nothing more than taking orders from Willie Brown.”

Clute, who received 31% of his 1984 campaign funds, goods and services from Brown and Assembly Democrats and much more than that in 1982, was rankled when reminded of these charges.

“The Willie Brown theme is, I think, in that category of innuendo and racist tactics that people see through,” Clute said. “Matt Webb, you had better face up to the fact that you are running against Steve Clute, not Willie Brown, the Democratic Caucus or anyone else.”

Clute added that this year, “I’m getting close to independently raising my own campaign money because I’ve developed a good record and positive reputation.”

How close?

“My goal is to raise more than 50% . . . locally and through legislative PACs. But I can’t tell exactly,” said Clute, who declined to go into detail on his campaign budget or spending plans.

Saracino estimated that the Webb campaign may spend as much as $300,000 in its effort to win the election, much of which will be spent on mailers. Of that, he said, Webb is expected to raise close to $200,000, with the rest coming from the Assembly Republican Caucus.

Otherwise, Saracino said, “Most of our help will be in other fashions such as advice and helping him meet campaign timetables, budgets, etc.”

Another prominent campaign theme is the reconfirmation election of Bird and several of her colleagues on the state Supreme Court.

“He (Clute) says he is opposing Rose Bird but he supports (Cruz) Reynoso and (Joseph) Grodin--which I think is a contradiction,” Webb said.

Clute agreed--with reservations.

“If you changed a good part of the Supreme Court all at once, there would be a vicious swing of the pendulum to a conservative bent, which would not be healthy,” Clute said.