Roberti Will Seek Vacant Valley Seat : Elections: The liberal legislator takes a more conservative tone in announcing his candidacy for the 20th District post vacated by Sen. Alan Robbins.

Liberal state Senate leader David A. Roberti (D-Los Angeles) announced Wednesday that he will run in a San Fernando Valley district, appearing to adopt more conservative themes to woo Valley voters for what may--by law--be his last hurrah in the Senate.

Roberti, who has been Senate president pro tem for a dozen years, said he will seek the 20th Senate District seat vacated by former Sen. Alan Robbins, who resigned in November after agreeing to plead guilty to federal corruption charges.

Speaking to several dozen aides, supporters and news reporters in Van Nuys, Roberti--long a champion of liberal causes--struck some distinctly neoliberal notes in announcing that he will campaign in the south-central Valley district, which is considered more conservative than his present one.

He promised to work to make state education and welfare programs more cost-efficient and ticked off several anti-crime bills that he authored, including a 1989 ban on the sales of assault rifles.

“We are simply wasting too much tax money on poor government economic policies and programs that don’t work,” Roberti said, pledging to “upset the apple cart” of the Sacramento status quo.

He also pledged to approve no tax increases as Senate leader and to help ensure that the Valley gets “its fair share” of government services--a favorite theme of conservative and Republican Valley political leaders.

Roberti’s present Hollywood-based district was parceled out among several other districts by the state Supreme Court, which recently rearranged California’s legislative and congressional district boundaries to conform to population changes.

So far, Roberti, 52, is the only major candidate in the April 7 special election to fill the remaining two years of Robbins’ four-year term, although two Democratic assemblymen--Terry B. Friedman of Los Angeles and Richard Katz of Sylmar--are evaluating whether to enter the race.

Even if Roberti wins, however, he would be unable to run again at the end of the two-year term--unless he wins an appeal to the U. S. Supreme Court--because he would run up against the term limits enacted by voters who passed Proposition 140 in 1990. Roberti recently lost an appeal to the state Supreme Court to nullify the term limits.

Two little-known Democrats have also entered the race--Encino political activist Glenn Bailey and Sherman Oaks land-use attorney Fred N. Gaines.

As Roberti wound up his speech at the State Office Building, he found himself briefly heckled by Gaines, who charged that Roberti’s campaign is using “$500,000 of special-interest money to buy this district.”

Gaines was referring to the amount of Roberti’s campaign war chest, which includes contributions from political action committees representing trial lawyers, doctors, unionized workers and other interest groups.

“I resent you saying you’re going to upset the apple cart when you are the apple cart in Sacramento and you’ve been the apple cart in Sacramento for 20 years,” Gaines shouted at Roberti as the Senate leader headed toward a waiting car.

Roberti’s decision to run in Robbins’ district defused a potential clash with state Sens. Herschel Rosenthal (D-Los Angeles) on Los Angeles’ Westside or Newton R. Russell (R-Glendale) in a district in the Burbank-Pasadena area. Roberti conducted opinion polls in all three districts before deciding to run in Robbins’.

Roberti said he opted not to run against Rosenthal in the new 23rd District in part because Rosenthal is a longtime ally and a race between them would have caused serious turmoil in the Senate Democratic Caucus, which Roberti heads.

A Democratic political consultant who asked for anonymity said Roberti was worried that Rosenthal might have tried to foment a rebellion against Roberti’s Senate leadership in an effort to embarrass him politically.

Rosenthal could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

Roberti’s advisers have also said Roberti could have been hurt among liberal Westside voters by his longstanding opposition to abortion.

By contrast, his abortion stand might have helped him in Russell’s more conservative, Republican-dominated district, although his otherwise liberal image might have damaged him there.

Friedman has said he has been urged by abortion rights groups to run for the Robbins seat, and Roberti conceded Wednesday that abortion could become a campaign issue against him.

But he insisted that the recession will be the primary issue.

“That’s No. 1 for everybody,” he said.

He added that he has worked to pass other legislation benefiting women and children, such as establishing comparable worth pay scales and providing state funding for after-school programs aimed at latchkey children.

Roberti acknowledged that he discussed Friedman’s prospective candidacy with Rep. Howard L. Berman (D-Panorama City) and Berman’s brother, Michael, who are leaders with Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Los Angeles) of a powerful Westside-Valley political organization. Friedman is one of the group’s allies.

Roberti said that while no bargain was struck, he felt confident that Friedman will not campaign against him.

Friedman said he had no comment on Roberti’s “forecasting of my plans.” He said he is still evaluating a possible Senate bid, although he is also considering seeking reelection in one of two Valley-area Assembly districts.