There’s No Shortage of Candidates Hoping for Mel Levine’s Job : Politics: If Senate race lures liberal congressman out of his seat, the Democratic primary to fill it is likely to be lively.

It’s still early, of course, but the prospect of a high-profile, high-stakes primary battle is taking shape to determine the Democratic nominee to succeed Rep. Mel Levine if the liberal Westside lawmaker runs for the U.S. Senate.

The likely foes are Assemblyman Tom Hayden and a representative, as yet unchosen, of the powerful Democratic machine headed by Reps. Henry A. Waxman and Howard L. Berman. Hayden already has requested papers from the Federal Election Commission to establish an exploratory campaign committee, but has not filed them pending an announcement by Levine about his plans.

Two of Hayden’s Assembly colleagues with close ties to the Waxman-Berman group--Terry B. Friedman and Burt Margolin--confirmed last week that they are exploring the option of running for Congress if Levine gives up his seat in the coastal 27th Congressional District, which stretches from Pacific Palisades nearly to the Palos Verdes Peninsula.

And Los Angeles City Councilman Zev Yaroslavsky also expressed interest in a House race under certain circumstances.

Levine has made no secret of his desire to seek higher office, although he has postponed an announcement about his political plans because the Persian Gulf War has overshadowed other news.

The Santa Monica Democrat has amassed a $1.7-million campaign fund and for weeks has been telling friends and supporters about his intention to enter the Senate contest.

The election of Sen. Pete Wilson as governor and the decision of Sen. Alan Cranston not to seek reelection because of health problems mean that both U.S. Senate seats will be up for grabs next year for the first time since California entered the Union in 1850.

In an age of political gridlock, when ambitious politicians have had their upward mobility blocked by other entrenched incumbents, the lure of two Senate seats on the same ballot is proving irresistible to Levine and others.

Any move by the five-term congressman to run for the Senate would open up a vacancy sure to be attractive to younger Democratic politicians eager to move up.

With its unique combination of a large and active Jewish community, well-heeled campaign contributors, Hollywood celebrities, entertainment industry figures, and liberal and progressive causes, the Westside is one of the most important Democratic bastions in the nation.

It is also Waxman’s and Berman’s turf. Their electoral reach extends far and wide, and their close allies include a number of liberal Jewish office-holders on the Westside and in the San Fernando Valley, such as Levine, Friedman, Margolin, Yaroslavsky and state Sen. Herschel Rosenthal.

For 10 years, Hayden has operated his own political organization on some of the same Westside turf from his base in Santa Monica.

Now, the two political forces may be on a collision course.

Hayden spokesman Duane Peterson said the assemblyman would only consider running for Congress if Levine seeks the Senate seat. “It would be an exploratory committee,” Peterson said. “It would not commit him.”

Hayden, 51, is becoming increasingly restless about his future. The Santa Monica Democrat has said he never planned to spend more than 10 years in the Assembly, and that anniversary just happens to coincide with next year’s elections.

Although running for Congress is one option, Hayden has discussed leaving political office altogether to write, lecture, teach and concentrate on environmental issues.

His and other lawmakers’ careers in Sacramento are now restricted by the passage last fall of Proposition 140, which imposed a limit of three terms for Assembly members and two terms for state senators. Many legislators also feel that staffing cuts mandated by Proposition 140 have further reduced their effectiveness. Hayden, for example, has lost three top aides in the last several weeks, and other lawmakers have had to reduce staff in their district and state Capitol offices.

In a clear signal that he is trying to improve ties with the critically important Jewish community, Hayden left Wednesday for a five-day trip to Israel. He returns today.

As was the case with the Vietnam War, Hayden is an outspoken opponent of U.S. military action in the Persian Gulf. “My gut tells me we’re sacrificing innocent blood for a not-so-innocent cause of access to petroleum,” he said just before the war with Iraq began.

In a fund-raising appeal sent last week on Hayden’s behalf, three Westside rabbis wrote that “he continues to believe that this war is a tragic mistake, but also believes in the clear right of Israelis to defend themselves against Saddam Hussein.”

Friedman, meanwhile, said working to secure Israel’s right to exist would be a top priority if he ran for Congress.

The West Los Angeles Democrat said he is exploring such a candidacy. “I am giving consideration to setting up a federal committee to raise money for it,” Friedman said. “It’s an opportunity that a number of people will pursue.”

Friedman said a clash between Hayden and the Waxman-Berman forces is “certainly possible.”

He cautioned that any discussion of a congressional race also depends on the shape of the congressional district that emerges from the reapportionment process. “Everything at this point is unknown,” Friedman said.

Margolin, a Los Angeles Democrat, said he too has what he called “an interest in running for Congress” and is exploring it.

Both Margolin and Friedman said they could not envision a circumstance where both would run for the same seat. “It’s too early to know who the candidate will be,” Margolin said.

Yaroslavsky also said it is premature to discuss a congressional race when “we don’t even know what the district would be.”

He said it is possible that the current configuration of Westside districts will change dramatically, particularly if a Democratic Legislature and Republican governor cannot agree on the lines, and the politically delicate matter ends up in the courts.

Even as currently drawn, Levine’s 27th Congressional District is not necessarily a safe Democratic seat. Although Levine, enjoying the advantages of incumbency, has carried the district easily in recent elections, the Democratic registration is only about 53%, and the South Bay portions generally lean toward the GOP.

Indeed, during much of the 1970s, the 27th District, containing many of the same precincts, was represented by conservative Republican firebrand Robert K. Dornan.

But if Levine runs for the Senate and the new district includes much of the Westside area Yaroslavsky now represents at City Hall, the councilman said, “I would definitely be interested in it. That doesn’t mean I will definitely do it.”

Rosenthal said a congressional race is an option. He said, however, that he is “happy in the Senate” and acknowledged that his age--72--might be a deterrent.