Garamendi Leads Over Press for Democratic Nomination : Insurance commissioner: Collis runs a distant third. Bannister out front among Republicans.

State Sen. John Garamendi (D-Walnut Grove) built a small but increasing lead over Los Angeles television commentator Bill Press in the race for the Democratic nomination for the state’s first elected insurance commissioner Tuesday night, with Board of Equalization Chairman Conway Collis running a weak third.

On the Republican side, Huntington Beach insurance agent Wes Bannister held the lead. La Habra insurance investigator John L. (Jack) Harden, San Jose attorney Tom Skornia and Santa Ana attorney John Parise were battling for second place.

With Democrats much more heavily funded than Republicans and receiving support from consumer organizations, it is generally felt that the Democratic nominee will go into the November general election a heavy favorite.

Garamendi, who repudiated past insurance industry support and campaigned on a platform of making the insurance companies obey Proposition 103, was winning big throughout the northern part of the state, and holding Press to smaller leads in Southern California than Garamendi amassed in the north.

It was evident in returns from Los Angeles and Orange counties that Garamendi’s direct mail campaign by the influential Berman-D’Agostino firm had managed to get the Sacramento Valley senator more votes in the metropolitan areas of the Southland than he had received before in two statewide races for governor and state controller. Garamendi, traveling with his family by van to Sacramento late Tuesday said that “things are moving in the right direction” and said he was preparing a formal victory statement.

Press, who had major financial support from members of the California Trial Lawyers Assn., ran strongest in the areas where television audiences had seen his commentaries for years.

Returns in the San Francisco Bay Area showed Garamendi with about a 3-2 lead over Press, and Garamendi ran 4 to 1 ahead in the Central Valley. By comparison, Press was running ahead about 3 to 2 in Los Angeles.

Collis had the support of Proposition 103 author Harvey Rosenfield and consumer advocate Ralph Nader in a last-minute advertising campaign, but the returns showed him well behind everywhere.

Press, monitoring the race from a suite at the Biltmore Hotel, said he felt “good about the way the campaign was run,” but was not hazarding any guesses about whether he or Garamendi would emerge as the nominee.

Former Common Cause director Walter Zelman was running fourth on the Democratic side, San Francisco attorney Ray Bourhis fifth, Temecula insurance man Larry Murphy sixth, and Alhambra City Councilman Michael Blanco seventh and last.

On the Republican side, behind Bannister, Harden, Skornia and Parise, Pasadena claims consultant Joseph Dunlop was running fifth and last.

Proposition 103, passed in 1988, made the insurance commissioner’s post an elective position this year. The primaries drew a large number of candidates to what was perceived as a job whose occupant could become a consumer champion.

From the start, all the principal candidates on the Democratic side said they would refuse insurers’ contributions. Although four of the five Republican candidates had an insurance industry background, the insurers did not give them much money either, after surveys showed that industry backing would be the kiss of death with the electorate.

The lack of insurance industry money meant that fund-raising opportunities for most of the contestants were limited. Another major lobby in the insurance field, trial lawyers, did give a considerable amount to Press, but little to other candidates.

The result was that two of the three best-funded campaigns, those of Garamendi and Collis, relied largely on loans the candidates made to themselves.

The main issue in the race appeared to be which candidate could do the most effective job of enforcing Proposition 103 and bringing about other reforms of insurance practices in the state, including bringing about lower prices.

The candidates varied in their prescriptions. Some vowed to crack down on fraud, several Republicans and two Democrats advocated no-fault insurance, and many said they would audit company accounts to uncover hidden profits. Collis, saying he would “break the backs” of the insurance companies, threatened to jail their executives if they did not obey Proposition 103.

No-fault insurance lost a key adherent during the campaign when Garamendi said he no longer thought it would be a good idea for California. But Zelman said that under limited circumstances he would favor it.

Press and Zelman favored a program of state health insurance for all, while almost all the other major party candidates said they favor some government role. Gradually, as the campaign wore on, health insurance seemed to become a bigger topic of debate and auto insurance a slightly lesser one.

Often, however, specifics were lacking in terms of what candidates would do as commissioner. In his advertising campaign, Garamendi said he would make companies obey Proposition 103 without saying how. Such generalities were usually the rule.