Politicians Survey New Remapped Landscape : Reapportionment: State Supreme Court plan may force some incumbents to fight each other for redrawn districts.

State Sen. Ed Davis (R-Santa Clarita) may find his home squeezed out of his political district that reaches across most of Ventura County.

Assemblywoman Cathie Wright (R-Simi Valley) may have to run against another Republican assemblywoman who has been moved into Wright’s Assembly district.

Assemblyman Tom McClintock (R-Thousand Oaks) sees a long-postponed opportunity to make the jump to Congress by running in a newly proposed congressional district that covers western Los Angeles County and his hometown of Thousand Oaks.

Reps. Robert J. Lagomarsino (R-Ventura) and Elton Gallegly (R-Simi Valley) each are digging their heels into a newly proposed congressional district that unites most of Ventura County but may force the two incumbents to fight it out for political survival.

These revelations unfolded Tuesday as anxious lawmakers in Sacramento and Washington pored over a redistricting plan proposed by the California Supreme Court.

A specially appointed panel of three retired judges redesigned congressional and legislative districts to reflect changes in population documented by the 1990 census.

The new map is scheduled to be adopted by the Supreme Court in late January unless the Legislature and Gov. Pete Wilson can agree on a redistricting plan of their own.

The judges’ plan aims to keep ethnic minority communities together and observe city and county boundaries as much as possible, the judges said. Political party registration and the protection of incumbents did not play a role in fashioning the new district lines, they said.

As a result, dozens of the proposed districts--including two in Ventura County--lump two or three officeholders together.

After taking a closer look at the proposed lines, Assemblywomen Wright and Paula Boland (R-Granada Hills) found their residences in the new 38th Assembly District. The Simi Valley-based district, which straddles the Ventura County-Los Angeles County line, includes Fillmore, some of Thousand Oaks, and western portions of the San Fernando Valley.

Both lawmakers said it is premature to speculate on how to resolve the potential conflict. “I would run against Paula if that’s the only option,” Wright said.

But Wright may have another option: to make a bid for the state Senate.

The newly proposed 19th State Senate District covers all of Wright’s proposed district plus Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Camarillo and Thousand Oaks.

Yet Sen. Davis’ home was cut out of the district, basically the area he has represented for 10 years. His house is on the wrong side of the Golden State Freeway, the dividing line used by the judges, said Hunt Braly, the senator’s top aide.

Davis could move into his old district or stay put in the newly created district that includes his hometown of Santa Clarita, Braly said.

“Basically, the senator will make no decision until he sees the maps and the demographics,” Braly said. “A lot of people are going to wait and see what Ed Davis does.”

Wright indicated that she might jump at the chance to fulfill a longtime goal of becoming a state senator. “If it’s an open seat, yeah, you’re darn right,” Wright said. “But I don’t want to jump into anything until it is all final.”

Assemblyman McClintock said he is considering running for Congress in a new congressional seat that includes his hometown of Thousand Oaks and portions of the San Fernando Valley, Calabasas and Malibu. The proposed district does not contain the residence of any incumbent congressman.

“I’d be intently interested in seeking such a congressional seat, but I think it’s highly premature to speculate until a final decision has been made,” McClintock said. “The districts could change radically between now and when a final plan is adopted and, in fact, could be scrapped completely.”

In 1986, McClintock had an opportunity to run for the seat left vacant by former Rep. Bobbi Fiedler (R-Northridge). But he pulled back when Tony Hope emerged as the favorite GOP candidate. Then-Simi Valley Mayor Elton Gallegly beat Hope for the Republican nomination.

If McClintock takes the plunge, he could face competition on many fronts. Fiedler, who has been out of politics for six years, said she is keeping open her options to run for one of two congressional seats.

“I would look at both of them very carefully,” she said. “Obviously, I don’t even know where my residence has landed at this point.”

Rep. Anthony C. Beilenson (D-Los Angeles) also could move into the new district to avoid an intra-party battle with Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Los Angeles). The two Democrats have found themselves placed in the same district.

The proposed congressional district would slightly favor a Republican candidate. Inside the proposed lines, 53% of the voters cast their ballots for President George Bush in 1988 and 49% for Gov. Pete Wilson in 1990.

Rep. Howard Berman (D-Panorama City), a key Democratic strategist, considers McClintock a vulnerable candidate in such a new district. McClintock, he said, is “anti-choice, ultra-right wing, hostile to environmental issues. That’s the ideal Republican for a Democrat to challenge in that marginal Republican, environmentally oriented district.”

Meanwhile, Reps. Gallegly and Lagomarsino strengthened their resolve against moving from the proposed Ventura County congressional district that could lead to a clash between two friends.

The new district, which would encompass all of Ventura County except Thousand Oaks, combines portions of both congressmen’s districts. Gallegly now represents the eastern half and northern portions of Ventura County as well as parts of the San Fernando Valley. Lagomarsino’s district includes most of western Ventura County and all of Santa Barbara County.

“Right now, I think it is certainly reasonable to say that my only focus is on Ventura County,” Gallegly said. “That’s where I’ve raised my family. That’s where I’ve served in Congress and served as (Simi Valley) council member and mayor. To move out of Ventura County is not appealing at all,” he said.

“I’ve lived in Ventura County all of my life,” said Lagomarsino, 65. Lagomarsino said he has no plans to move to Santa Barbara County to run for an open congressional seat that would encompass Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties.

“I’m sure that is what he wants,” Lagomarsino said, referring to Gallegly. “As of now, I have no intention of doing that.” He added that it would be closer for Gallegly to move from Simi Valley to Thousand Oaks, where he could run for the open seat being considered by McClintock.

Lagomarsino also denied persistent rumors that he is considering retirement.

“I’ve heared that rumor for years,” Lagomarsino said. “I think it is very wishful thinking on the part of certain people.”

Times staff writer Jack Cheevers contributed to this story.