Umberg Primary Foe Quits Attorney General’s Race : Politics: Garden Grove assemblyman is elated by Arlo Smith’s move. He’ll face incumbent Dan Lungren.

In a surprise move, San Francisco Dist. Atty. Arlo Smith announced Friday that he is dropping out of the race for attorney general, setting up a showdown between Democratic Assemblyman Tom Umberg of Orange County and Republican incumbent Dan Lungren.

Smith, who narrowly lost to Lungren in 1990 and had been campaigning aggressively in recent weeks, said he was concerned neither he or Umberg (D-Garden Grove) could unseat Lungren after an expensive primary battle.

“The negatives and the high cost incurred in a primary skirmish would only aid a sitting attorney general,” Smith said in a press release, adding that “Dan Lungren must be replaced.”

Umberg, now the lone candidate in the Democratic primary for attorney general, said he was shocked by Smith’s announcement.

“We won the primary!” said the gleeful assemblyman, who had raised eight times more campaign money than Smith. “I think he saw the writing on the wall. We were gaining momentum, we were getting endorsements. . . . We needed the primary to demonstrate strength, and we demonstrated strength by forcing Arlo out.”

Umberg, a former federal prosecutor and the only Orange County Democrat holding state or federal office, said Smith called Friday afternoon to give him the news.

“He was very gracious about it,” said Umberg, a two-term assemblyman. “He said that he thought we should be devoting our mutual efforts toward electing a different attorney general, that a primary might be divisive. He thought for the greater good, he would get out of the race.”

Lungren’s campaign manager, Joanne Stabler, was also taken aback by the news.

“Arlo’s such a fighter,” she said. “It did surprise me.”

A few Sacramento insiders suggested that Smith might have been persuaded to pull out by Democratic kingpins. On Thursday, Smith paid a visit to the state Capitol, holding discussions with Assembly Speaker Willie Brown and other Democratic leaders.

Smith could not be reached for comment on the talks. Dennis Collins, Smith’s campaign manager, said he was not privy to the meetings with Brown and the others, but played down any effect they might have had.

“What impact that had on his decision I don’t know,” Collins said. “There were no threats or coercion. I think there might have been a very pragmatic discussion of the way things stood and decisions were made accordingly. It was a real hard decision on Arlo’s part.”

Umberg’s camp said they did not ask for Brown or anyone else to intervene on their behalf.

“We made no effort to get Arlo out,” said George Urch, Umberg’s campaign manager. “As a matter of fact, we were looking forward to running against Arlo. A rigorous primary has its benefits.”

In particular, he said, a primary battle could have helped boost Umberg’s name identification around the state. Outside Orange County, Umberg is little known.

With Smith now out of the race, Umberg will be able to marshal his forces and save a bundle of campaign cash--he had estimated the primary alone would cost him $1.2 million. Last month, Umberg reported about $300,000 cash on hand compared to $36,000 for Smith.

Aside from holding a substantial fund-raising edge, Umberg had the backing of more than two dozen colleagues in the Legislature, a powerful campaign weapon because those lawmakers can provide strategic help and a ready soapbox to promote a statewide candidate in their districts.

In addition, Urch said, Umberg should gain a hefty measure of respect for “slaying Arlo Smith before he’s even started.” Urch also suggested that Smith’s departure will allow Umberg to begin assailing Lungren’s record all the sooner.

“Now it’s Dan Lungren who is the target,” Urch said. “We’re now on an equal footing with the Republican attorney general.”

Stabler said Lungren didn’t care who he faced. The attorney general, she said, will run on the strength of his record.

“It doesn’t change our campaign strategy all that much,” she said. “We’re just going to go forward and focus as we have been on the November general election. Frankly, I’m excited about this. Now we have a defined opponent.”

In other statewide races, Democratic state Sen. David A. Roberti of Van Nuys formally unveiled his candidacy for state treasurer Friday. Roberti had also been eyeing a seat on the lower-profile State Board of Equalization, but said he opted for the treasurer’s race because he felt that office could be transformed into a crime-fighting unit.

First, however, Roberti must face a recall campaign in his San Fernando Valley Senate district being led by gun-rights activists angered by the senator’s support of a 1989 assault weapon ban. The longtime legislator portrayed himself Friday as a feisty underdog who refuses to give his recall opponents the satisfaction of seeing him pass up a run for statewide office.

If elected treasurer, Roberti said, he would work hard to protect California’s coffers so more money would be available for crime-fighting programs. In addition, Roberti said he would ensure the state has enough funds to build the estimated $6.6 billion worth of prisons needed as a result of the tough, new “three strikes and you’re out” sentencing law.

Roberti faces a formidable challenger in Sacramento developer Phil Angelides, who has also declared he will run for the Democratic nomination for state treasurer. Angelides, the former state Democratic Party chairman, has raised about $2 million for his campaign, while Roberti has been forced to shift much of his general campaign money to the recall battle.

Angelides said Friday he has endorsements from both of California’s senators, Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, as well as former Los Angeles Assemblyman Mike Roos, who co-authored the assault weapon ban that now haunts Roberti in the recall.

“I am running for state treasurer to create 100,000 jobs by investing in California,” Angelides said in a statement. “It is time for new leaders who can rebuild California.”

The lone GOP candidate for state treasurer is Board of Equalization member Matthew Fong of Los Angeles, who charged earlier that Roberti is a career politician who is past his prime.

Meanwhile, in the governor’s race, Republican Gov. Pete Wilson filed his declaration of candidacy for reelection as expected before Friday’s 5 p.m. deadline. The three Democrats opposing him, state Treasurer Kathleen Brown, state Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi, and state Sen. Tom Hayden (D-Santa Monica) also filed their papers.

Democratic Controller Gray Davis filed to run for lieutenant governor to replace Lt. Gov. Leo McCarthy, who is retiring. Assemblyman Stan Statham (R-Oak Run), who wants to split California into three separate states, and Sen. Cathie Wright (R-Simi Valley) will oppose each other for the GOP nomination.

Acting Secretary of State Tony Miller, a Democrat, filed to replace his old boss, March Fong Eu, who resigned after being nominated to a U.S. ambassadorship. Other Democrats in the same race are former Los Angeles City Councilman Michael Woo and Assemblywoman Gwen Moore of Los Angeles. Former Assembly Republican leader Bill Jones of Fresno is seeking the nomination on the GOP side.

In the state controller’s race, Assemblyman Rusty Areias (D-San Jose) will face Democrats Kathleen Connell, a Westside financial consultant and former Los Angeles housing director, and Alameda County Supervisor Don Perata. Former Assemblyman Tom McClintock of Thousand Oaks is running for the GOP nod.

Sen. Art Torres (D-Los Angeles), the chairman of the Senate Insurance Committee, and Assemblyman Burt Margolin (D-Los Angeles), the chairman of the Assembly Health Committee, filed the necessary papers to run for state insurance commissioner. So did Republicans Assemblyman Charles W. Quackenbush of San Jose, former director of the Department of Consumer Affairs Jim Conran of Orinda, and Wes Bannister of Huntington Beach, an insurance agency owner who was the 1990 GOP nominee.

Assemblywoman Delaine Eastin (D-Fremont) and Maureen DiMarco, the governor’s cabinet-level adviser for child development and education, filed for the nonpartisan office of state superintendent of public instruction.

Times staff writer Cynthia H. Craft also contributed to this story.