ELECTIONS : Brooks, Sen. Dills Triumph in Key Primary Battles : State Senate: Ralph Dills, 84, beats three challengers for Democratic nomination in 28th District. Republican David Barrett Cohen was unopposed.

He may be 84 years old and a veteran of many long election nights, but a spirited state Sen. Ralph Dills swung into a celebratory series of saxophone solos Tuesday as returns showed him headed for a decisive primary victory.

Dills (D-El Segundo) and his supporters hailed his victory over three challengers as proof he will successfully stave off Republican challenger David Barrett Cohen, 34, in November. They also interpreted it as a clear signal from voters in the 28th state Senate District that Dills’ long tenure in Sacramento is not an impediment but a strength. His legislative and judicial career dates to 1938.

Those voters “like the experience. They like the power that goes with it,” Dills said as he took a break from playing the sax late Tuesday. “Despite the fact I’m 84, I carry my weight. I’ll be there rapping the gavel at 4 a.m. when a lot of (other legislators) have gone home.”

Dills squarely confronted the age issue by sprinkling his South Bay-based district with billboards depicting him toting his saxophone and emblazoned with the slogan, “Too old to quit.”

While some had wondered if that approach would backfire, Dills finished well ahead in the race for the Democratic nomination.

Torrance Councilman George Nakano lagged behind, followed by Venice attorney Mike Sidley and Manhattan Beach real estate broker Jo Ann Rodda.

But some Republicans are promising to resume where his Democratic primary rivals left off by hammering at his long tenure in the state capital.

Although Democrats hold 53% to 32% majority in district voter registration, the GOP’s Cohen said he sees a chance to win by targeting Dills’ tenure and forging a coalition of minority groups he called “a rainbow on the right.”

“This is going to be a different Republican campaign in contrast to your suburban, white-bread, country-club campaign,” said Cohen, who is half Samoan. An attorney and Redondo Beach resident, he was unopposed in the GOP primary.

Cohen noted Wednesday that Dills failed to capture 50% of the vote and called that a poor showing for a sitting incumbent. He also stressed that Dills is a new face in much of the Senate district, which was extensively redrawn after the 1990 Census.

“It’s the only state Senate race (in Los Angeles County) where we have a clear chance of taking it,” Keith McCarthy, chairman of the Los Angeles County Republican Party, said earlier.

But Dills’ campaign coordinator, Timothy Mock, predicted the senator’s showing was decisive enough that Republicans may invest less money in challenging him.

“I anticipate that they will still target our district, but how strong that targeting will be is questionable,” Mock said Wednesday.

Returns dribbled in so slowly that candidates were still waiting at midnight for voting patterns to emerge. Dills, sporting black patent-leather shoes and a polka-dot tie, passed the time by joining a swing band in such classic tunes as “New York, New York” before a crowd of about 100 at the Radisson Hotel in Carson.

By contrast, Sidley, 32, joined more than 100 youthful supporters in the back rooms of the trendy West Beach Cafe in Venice, where they cheered their candidate over pizza, beer and billiards.

Sidley blamed his poor showing on the general apathy of voters disenchanted with negative political campaigns. He praised Dills for maintaining a positive tone despite attacks from Nakano.

“I tried to run a positive campaign and to talk about change,” Sidley said. “But I think people are frightened of it.” He expressed satisfaction that he was able to communicate such ideas as his handgun ban proposal.

Nakano finally conceded at 1:30 a.m., blaming two factors for his defeat.

“One was that Dills was able to spend the money he was able to spend. . . . The other factor would be the splitting of the vote” among Dills’ opponents, Nakano said.

Nakano, 58, got strong support from many local elected officials, and his six Torrance City Council colleagues visited his election-night gathering at Dante’s restaurant in Redondo Beach. But the mood was generally somber, the only outburst of emotion surfacing when campaign manager Debbie Cox momentarily transposed the vote counts, mistakenly making it appear Nakano had taken the lead.

Torrance Mayor Dee Hardison said she thought Nakano sent out his campaign mailers too late. As for Dills, she said: “He has never bothered to find out who the political leaders from his area are and come to introduce himself.”

The redrawing of district lines forced Dills to campaign in new turf. The new district stretches from Venice to Palos Verdes Estates and extends inland to Torrance, Carson and Compton.

That, coupled with the large field of challengers, made this the strongest primary challenge of Dills’ political career, which began in the late 1930s, and one of his most expensive. He had spent $337,000 by the end of May, more than the three other candidates combined.

Dills tried to appeal to liberal beach area voters, using his early mailers to emphasize his support of opposition to the creation of Japanese internment camps during World War II.

Nakano attacked Dills for supporting offshore oil drilling in the past and accepting contributions from oil companies. Nakano had the endorsement of the Sierra Club and the California League of Conservation Voters. Sidley was backed by the local environmental group, Heal the Bay.

Despite such efforts, Dills took the lead with the first ballot returns and held it throughout the night.

“I can’t believe all these people voted for Dills,” said Wanna Hadnott, a disappointed Sidley volunteer. “Most people in the district weren’t even alive back when he was (first elected) a public official in 1938.”

Community correspondents Mary Guthrie and Adrian Maher contributed to this report.