50th District Voters Choose Tucker to Succeed His Father

The voters of the 50th Assembly District established a political dynasty Tuesday, sending Curtis R. Tucker Jr. to Sacramento to fill the Assembly seat held for 14 years by his late father, former Democratic Assemblyman Curtis R. Tucker of Inglewood.

The 34-year-old Tucker, a legislative aide who emerged from obscurity after his father died of cancer last October, beat three other candidates in a special election that drew few voters to the polls.

With all 171 precincts reporting, Democrat Tucker had 12,250 votes or 71.2% of the total. Republican business consultant Mike Davis ran a distant second with 3,235 votes or 18.8%.

By capturing more than 50% of the votes cast, Tucker avoided a runoff against Davis. He is expected to be sworn in by Thursday in Sacramento.

Inglewood school board member Lois Hill-Hale, another Democrat on the ballot, drew 1,125 votes or 6.5%, and Los Angeles Police Officer Carl McGill, also a Democrat, received 411 votes or 2.4%. Democrat Roderick Wright, who dropped out of the race too late to be removed from the ballot, had 188 votes or 1.1%

Tucker’s name, combined with big-name endorsements from powerful Democrats and a huge war chest made him the heavy favorite in the race to fill the vacancy created after his father made California history last November by winning reelection after his death.

At his storefront headquarters in Inglewood beneath the banner of his father’s earlier campaigns, Tucker said, “the legacy is being passed on,” not only to him but his supporters. “My name helped tremendously, but those people won this for me.”

Elder Tucker’s Wish

The elder Tucker, who rose from being the first black on the Inglewood City Council to become chairman of the Assembly Health Committee and patriarch of Inglewood politics, often said he hoped his son would succeed him. Citing that wish, Assembly Speaker Willie Brown (D-San Francisco) backed the younger Tucker and placed financial and political muscle at his disposal.

Brown also pressured Gov. George Deukmejian to reschedule the election from its original date in April to February. Brown’s support kept several potentially strong candidates--Inglewood Mayor Edward Vincent, Los Angeles City Councilman Robert Farrell and Inglewood Councilman Daniel Tabor--out of the race.

Tucker’s victory gives Brown a crucial 41st vote in the 80-member Assembly.

Throughout the campaign, Tucker was the target of attacks from his opponents who questioned his credentials and called him an unqualified puppet.

As he savored his victory, Tucker dismissed those charges and said the voters had ignored them as well. “They insulted the voters’ intelligence” he said of his opponents. “The voters knew who the best candidate was. They saw through the smoke screens. The people were informed.”

Mostly Democratic

The predominantly black and Latino Assembly district includes Inglewood, El Segundo, Westchester, Lennox and parts of South-Central Los Angeles. It is 77% Democratic.

Tucker outspent his rivals by a wide margin, with contributions from the medical industry and the Democratic establishment totaling nearly $150,000.

Tucker kept a generally low profile during the campaign, missing most candidate forums. But his well-funded organization, run by political consultants and workers on loan from Speaker Brown’s staff, sent election literature into the homes of voters and hit the streets and telephones in a concerted get-out-the-vote drive.

Tucker is on leave from his job as a legislative aide to Assemblywoman Gwen Moore (D-Los Angeles), for whom he has worked about a year. He previously worked five years for Assemblyman Mike Roos (D-Los Angeles).

The other candidates were limited by their resources. Davis, 34, who raised about $11,000 from Republican leaders, concentrated on conservative voters in Republican El Segundo and Westchester, hoping low turnout in other areas could lead to an upset. He was seeking the seat for the third time, most recently losing to the elder Tucker last November.

Hill-Hale, 52, a former aide to Sen. Diane Watson (D-Los Angeles), conducted a feisty grass-roots campaign that relied heavily on precinct walking and appearances at churches. She raised about $10,000.

McGill, 29, the clear underdog, focused on the issues of gangs and crime, which he blamed on ineffective political leadership. The police officer and anti-gang activist drew his main support from South-Central Los Angeles community organizations.