CALIFORNIA ELECTIONS / GOVERNOR : Candidates Launch Final Blitz Before Tuesday’s Vote

The primary election campaign for governor comes to an end in traditional fashion today, as candidates tour California’s major media and voter centers by plane, bus and radio-TV waves in final appeals for votes.

The secretary of state’s office has estimated that 5.6 million Californians will turn out Tuesday to choose party nominees for all major state offices, the U.S. Senate and House, the Legislature, nine statewide ballot measures and a variety of county and local offices. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m.

The spotlight has been on the contest for governor, as Republican Pete Wilson seeks renomination, and Treasurer Kathleen Brown, Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi and state Sen. Tom Hayden battle for the right to carry the Democratic banner into the fall campaign.

Brown, the leader in the polls all year long, planned events in San Francisco and Los Angeles today that focus on her theme of creating 1 million new jobs over the next four years. Brown has been touring the state by bus in recent weeks.

Garamendi visited a string of small and medium-size cities by plane Sunday and hits the big media and voter markets today, traveling from Sacramento to Oakland, Los Angeles and San Diego.

Hayden planned stops in San Diego, San Jose, Santa Cruz and San Francisco, returning to Los Angeles late tonight.

On the Republican side, Wilson will wind up the campaign as he usually does, with a rally in his hometown of San Diego this evening. He also has scheduled an appearance on a Los Angeles morning television show today.

Throughout the weekend, upstart challenger Ron Unz continued to try to engage Wilson in a second radio debate. But the Wilson campaign said it was not about to give Unz the opportunity to raise any new issues or make any charges that might be difficult to refute on the eve of the election.

Unz also planned to hold news conferences in Sacramento and Burbank today.

Wilson addressed veterans at a breakfast in Riverside on Sunday.

Also Sunday, Brown made campaign bus stops in Downey, Lakewood, Loma Linda and Pomona and planned to be in San Francisco overnight.

Garamendi hedgehopped in a twin-engine prop plane from Bakersfield to Fresno, Santa Barbara, Salinas and Chico.

Hayden spent much of Sunday making the rounds of radio talk shows and taping a television interview in Los Angeles.