Honig Bows Out of Race for Governor

State Supt. of Public Instruction Bill Honig bowed out of preliminary jockeying for the 1990 gubernatorial race Wednesday, announcing he will run for reelection in order to concentrate his “heart and soul” on implementing Proposition 98, the landmark school finance measure.

“You’re talking about a major change in the structure of state government and a major change in (funding) priorities,” Honig said, referring to the ballot initiative that voters approved by a razor-thin margin Nov. 8. “That stuff is not going to come easy. We’re really going to have to work hard on it. We could lose in Sacramento what we won at the polls, and I don’t want that to happen.”

Gov. George Deukmejian strongly opposed Proposition 98 and, after the election, denounced the measure as “highly irresponsible” because it will mean less money for non-education programs.

The new law requires that 39% of the state’s general fund be earmarked for public elementary and high schools, as well as community colleges. This presumably will mean a $215 million boost in state aid during this fiscal year and about $450 million in the next. But precise implementation of the measure will depend on crucial budget decisions still to be made by the governor and the Legislature.

“I feel I made a pledge (to voters) to be on top of the implementation of 98,” Honig told a press conference. “If I were to run for governor, I would do it full time. That’s the only way you could win. You’d have to do it heart and soul. And I’d rather put the heart and soul into education right now, given the opportunities and given the support by the public. . . . This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

Honig’s withdrawal from the gubernatorial sweepstakes leaves three prominent Democrats in various phases of preparing to run for their party’s nomination: state Controller Gray Davis, former San Francisco Mayor Dianne Feinstein and State Atty. Gen. John K. Van de Kamp. On the Republican side, Gov. George Deukmejian has said he will decide by the end of this year whether to seek a third term.

Potential candidates are being pressured into early decisions about 1990 because of a new political “reform” measure--Proposition 73--that now makes it much tougher to raise campaign funds. The law requires candidates to announce which office they are running for before raising money and prohibits them from spending the funds on any race except for that office. It also limits the size of each contribution.

Van de Kamp told The Times that he already is spending about three hours a day raising money for the gubernatorial race and has more than $800,000 available. He said he definitely plans to run for the office.

Davis said he has more than $600,000 in a kitty to run either for governor or reelection and will decide by Feb. 15 which office to seek. Confidantes said they expect him to run for governor, at least for a few months before reassessing his prospects with the fall-back option of running for reelection.

Feinstein has retained a political consultant--Clint Reilly of San Francisco--but has been relatively inactive so far, leaving other politicos to question whether she actually will run.

As a gubernatorial candidate, Honig, 51, would have faced an uphill battle for the nomination. Although he is well-known statewide and won reelection in 1986 with 78% of the vote, he would have needed to significantly broaden his constituency and issues, as well as raise several million dollars for a primary campaign.

But the outspoken, wealthy San Francisco native said: “This is much more of a personal decision than it is a political decision. . . .

“You know, I haven’t run away from a fight before. So this is not walking away from a fight. It would have been walking away from an obligation, a commitment, a responsibility (to education). . . . Look, I like this job. . . . The reason I’m trying to clear the air now is that I want to make it very clear I’m going to fight for the implementation of (Proposition) 98. That’s my basic purpose, my central goal right now.”

Honig said he had been “seriously contemplating” running for governor. He paved the way for such a race last June by switching his voter registration from “decline to state” to Democrat. Although the office of superintendent of public instruction officially is nonpartisan, Honig said he will remain a Democrat.

“I believe in what the Democrats have to say,” he explained. “The Republicans are trapped in a philosophy of basically stand-pat. They’re not as likely to think about what has to be done in the future.”

Although Honig and Deukmejian now have a cordial, if somewhat distant, relationship, they were at each other’s political throats for a long time after their 1986 reelections. Honig repeatedly denounced Deukmejian’s proposed state budget as “a disaster” for education. And the governor in turn called Honig a “snake-oil salesman,” “a demagogue” and a “budget-buster.”

“Bill has a lot of support among teachers,” noted Ed Foglia, head of the 200,000-member California Teachers Assn., chief sponsors of Proposition 98. “They like his advocacy--the idea of him standing up and fighting for what he believes. His decision to run for reelection means there won’t be a contest at all” for the office.

Roberta Weintraub, president of the Los Angeles Unified School District board, when asked whether Honig would have any trouble winning a third term in 1990, replied: “Are you kidding? He’s done a superb job. And he hasn’t lost his enthusiasm.”

Honig poured $425,000 of his own campaign money into the successful effort to win voter approval of Proposition 98. But he also briefly got involved in another ballot effort--on behalf of no-fault insurance--which he now wishes he hadn’t, he indicated Tuesday.

While he still believes no-fault must be part of any solution to the insurance situation, Honig said, “I learned a little bit about when you get involved and when you can’t get involved.” Pushing aggressively for no-fault insurance distracted from his education efforts, the schools chief acknowledged.