State Legislature : Incumbents Killea, Gotch, Alpert Deserve to Keep Their Seats

Thanks to a redistricting that helped level the partisan playing fields, San Diego is the site of some of the state’s most-watched legislative races. Money is pouring in from both major parties to fuel competitive showdowns in three key races--the 39th Senate district and the 76th and 78th Assembly districts.

But each of those seats is now occupied by solid incumbents. And the challengers have failed to make the case for change.

In the 39th Senate District, which includes most of coastal and north-central San Diego County, state Sen. Lucy Killea, an independent, is facing off against GOP nominee Jim Ellis, a businessman and former state senator. Although most candidates are running away from the insider label, Ellis is touting his long record in government--from his early days as a San Diego councilman to his 1988 retirement from the Senate--as a plus once Proposition 140’s term limits take hold.

Indeed, Ellis had a reputation as a hard-working, competent legislator. And his proposal to consolidate state boards and commission has merit. But voters imposed term limits to find fresh faces and ideas, not to resurrect the career of someone who just a few years ago confessed to being burned out on government.

Killea, on the other hand, has been in the vanguard of governmental reform since switching from Democrat to independent in mid-term. This year, she passed a bill establishing a bipartisan commission that will conduct a comprehensive evaluation of state government and recommend reforms. And she continues as a leader on waste and recycling issues.

The Times endorses Lucy Killea in the 39th Senate District.

The 76th Assembly District encompasses San Diego’s inland suburbs, including San Diego State University and Miramar Naval Air Station. The incumbent, Democrat Mike Gotch, was elected to the seat in 1990 and already has an impressive record of accomplishments, particularly on family issues and recycling. He has authored legislation increasing money for special-education programs, requiring state agencies to recycle trash, and expanding the availability of immunization shots to children.

His opponent, Dick Daleke, a retired Navy captain, says he entered the race because California is “sliding toward socialism.” Lacking substantive issues to grasp, he is trying to paint Gotch, a political moderate, as a stooge of Assembly Speaker Willie Brown. That’s a sign of desperation. Though Daleke, a strong opponent of abortion rights, denies any formal affiliation with Christian fundamentalists, about 60% of the funds he raised in the primary came from the California Christian Coalition, according to an analysis by the San Francisco Examiner.

We prefer the proven, moderate leadership of Mike Gotch in the 76th Assembly District.

The battle in the 78th Assembly District, which includes much of coastal San Diego, is a contest between two likable moderates: Democratic incumbent Dede Alpert and GOP nominee Jeff Marston. Like Gotch, Alpert has proven effective in just two short years in office. She is the author of legislation outlawing possession of a key ingredient to methamphetamine and requiring day-care providers to learn CPR.

Marston, who has served most of the past 15 years serving as an aide to GOP officeholders, briefly won an Assembly seat in a 1990 special election, only to lose it 10 weeks later to Gotch. He, too, has been trying to play the Willie Brown card because Marston and Alpert differ very little on the issues. But such partisan ploys aren’t likely to stir voters in this independent-minded district.

The Times endorses Dede Alpert in the 78th Assembly District.