Independent on Ballot for House

A screenwriter-turned-novice-politician, Rick Pamplin of Palmdale can imagine himself starring in his own real-life drama: “Mr. Pamplin Goes to Washington.”

“I truly believe we have a shot, and it’s going to be a major upset,” Pamplin, 38, said Sunday, two days after winning a place on the November ballot as an independent candidate in California’s new 25th Congressional District. “My wife says I’ll have to start wearing congressmen’s clothes--pin-striped suits and ties--instead of my boots and jeans.”

Pamplin, who has never before sought political office and launched his campaign in July as a backer of then-presidential candidate Ross Perot, said the “Perot people” played key roles among the volunteers who gathered 12,211 signatures--4,628 more than needed--to place him on the ballot. Pamplin was urged by friends to run for the House while working in Antelope Valley’s Perot organization.

His opponents are Republican Howard McKeon, a banker and former Santa Clarita mayor who is generally regarded as the favorite, and Democrat James Gilmartin, a Santa Clarita attorney. The new congressional seat--created by redistricting as a result of the 1990 census--will represent the fast-growing Antelope and Santa Clarita valleys, as well as a portion of the San Fernando Valley.

Pamplin’s candidacy may potentially “make for an interesting race and change the dynamics” of the 25th District campaign, said analyst Paul Clarke of Northridge, a corporate political consultant.

“You’ve got a Republican district, but you’ve also got a district that is not happy with President Bush, and that’s got to hurt the Republican candidate,” Clarke said. “And if anything goes awry with the Bill Clinton-Al Gore ticket, that could hurt the Democratic candidate. I’ve seen third-party and write-in candidates win congressional seats before, so there’s every reason to think this candidate can be a factor.”

Much depends, Clarke said, on Pamplin’s campaign financing. “If he’s raising enough money, he could have an effect on the race--even if he doesn’t win.”

For now, Pamplin takes pride in having spent only $3,000 to get on the ballot without waging an expensive primary campaign.

Pamplin still supports Perot. “I hope he decides to get back into the race,” he said. He added, however, that he’s unhappy with a Perot proposal to add a 50-cent-a-gallon gasoline tax to help reduce the federal deficit. “That’s a tax that would hurt the middle-class and working-class people of this country,” he said. “And it would clearly hurt the people of this commuter district. You’ve got people who go back and forth to Los Angeles every day--and they’ve got $400-a-month gasoline bills to prove it.”

Pamplin, who with his wife, actress Cindy Maranne, is bringing up a 4-year-old son, Ryan, said he was one of those commuters when he was an executive of a San Fernando Valley production company and taught screenplay writing at USC and Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles.