California IN BRIEF : SACRAMENTO : Panel Approves Bill on Killea Switch

An Assembly committee unanimously approved a bill that would allow a Democratic state senator to run for reelection next year as an independent. Sen. Lucy Killea of San Diego announced Monday that she plans to leave the Democratic Party and run as an independent in 1992. She could not do that under current law, which would have required her to make the change one year before the June, 1992, primary election. The Ways and Means Committee approved her bill allowing a change to independent status one year before a November general election. Killea said her bill made sense because independent candidates do not run in primary elections anyway, but get on the general election ballot by submitting petitions. Killea said Monday she was making the switch to show her dissatisfaction with the Democratic Party’s record on political and campaign reform.