ELECTIONS 37TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT : Incumbent Wright Faces Scrappy Foe in Democrat Petrie

In the June primary, Republican Assemblywoman Cathie Wright fought and won perhaps the most bitter primary battle in her career as the representative of the 37th Assembly District.

Stressing her legislative achievements over the past 10 years, the veteran legislator survived repeated attacks on her ethics by opponent Hunt Braly, an aide to state Sen. Ed Davis (R-Santa Clarita). Wright beat Braly by a margin of 59% to 41%.

Now, the Simi Valley lawmaker is facing another equally energetic--if under-funded--opponent in Democrat Dennis Petrie, 29, of Canyon Country.

But Petrie, program director of the Rancho San Antonio home for boys in Chatsworth, said he is taking a different approach than Braly. Petrie has refrained from attacking Wright’s efforts to intervene with law enforcement authorities on behalf of her daughter, Victoria, who faced jail or the loss of her driver’s license after receiving 27 traffic tickets over seven years.

“I refuse to sling mud,” he said.

Instead, Petrie said he is emphasizing the positive programs he would initiate if elected, particularly on behalf of the environment. Unlike Wright, Petrie is a strong supporter of several controversial environmental initiatives on the November ballot, including Proposition 128, known as “Big Green.”

Also in the race is John R. Spooner Sr., 63, a Libertarian from Lompoc, who is campaigning to lower taxes.

The sprawling district includes the Santa Clarita Valley, Chatsworth, Westlake Village, Agoura, a portion of the Antelope Valley and part of Northridge in Los Angeles County; Simi Valley, Ojai and Fillmore in Ventura County; and Lompoc, Buellton and Solvang in Santa Barbara County.

Of the district’s 199,224 voters, 52.4% are Republicans and 36.4% are Democrats. Fewer than 1% of the voters are registered Libertarians.

After an expensive primary battle against Braly in which the two candidates spent more than $500,000, Wright reported having only $28,694 on hand as of Friday.

Petrie said he has raised less than $6,000. He has printed a brochure emphasizing his views, but he and volunteers have hand-delivered many of them to voters rather than pay for a mass mailing.

“We’ve mailed a few to parts of the district that are farthest away,” he said. “It’s pretty much a grass-roots campaign, as it has had to be. We’ve been phone-banking, going door to door. I’ve been to each area to distribute literature and to walk precincts.”

Petrie supports better educational opportunities and wants more attention devoted to helping the homeless, senior citizens and youth. He also is quick to point out what he sees as Wright’s ties to special interest groups and her lack of support for the environment.

“She supports pesticides,” he said. “She’s got an atrocious environmental record. Cathie Wright is a special interest candidate. A lot of her money comes from outside the district, from big business, developers, savings and loans.”

Petrie said he is trying to show voters that, if they want change, they shouldn’t “vote for the incumbent all the time.”

A graduate of Cal State Dominguez Hills with a degree in human services, Petrie said he was influenced by Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. “I’m hoping the 1990s will be a movement away from ‘me-ism,’ ” he added.

But Petrie is fighting an uphill battle against the entrenched Wright. Elected in 1980, the 61-year-old Wright has easily beaten Democratic opponents in the past. In 1988, she received 72.8% of the vote, compared to the 24.9% garnered by her opponent, Democrat Jeffrey Marcus.

However, Wright said she is not taking her reelection for granted. She is making frequent public appearances and has been devoting energy on the stump to explaining the propositions on the ballot. “If I were the average voter,” Wright said, “I think I’d just throw up my hands in frustration.”

Wright said she does not tell her constituents how they should vote. “I go over both sides of the propositions. I only say how I feel about a certain measure if I’m asked.”

In particular, Wright said she opposes both Propositions 131 and 140, which would limit the terms of legislators. “For people who think they will get a change by limiting terms, they won’t,” she said. Wright also opposes Big Green.