California Elections / GOVERNOR : Bouncing Back From a Trouncing : Kathleen Brown says she plans to stay in politics. Experts say she gained experience and name recognition but must make amends with fellow Democrats for gaffes.

Facing reporters just hours after her crushing loss, Kathleen Brown proved Wednesday that it will take more than defeat to squelch her sense of humor.

Asked about her immediate plans, the Democratic gubernatorial nominee got laughs when she said, “I was thinking about a 30-hour bus tour”--a reference to one of her final campaign events, a round-the-clock marathon around the state.

Then when asked if politics will be part of her future, she repeated her contention--made several times in recent months--that as the sister of one governor and the daughter of another, politics seems to run in her blood.

“I’ve said that I suffer from a genetic defect and genetic defects don’t go away, they’re with you for life,” she said, prompting applause from a handful of supporters. “I would expect that in some way I will continue to contribute.”

In the wake of Gov. Pete Wilson’s landslide win--he won 55% of the votes compared to Brown’s 40%--political analysts disagreed Wednesday on what role, if any, Brown may expect to play in politics. Some said Brown could take some inspiration from Dianne Feinstein, who used the name recognition she had gained during her unsuccessful race for governor against Wilson in 1990 to win a seat in the U.S. Senate two years later.

But Feinstein lost her gubernatorial bid by 3.46 points. And she had something that Brown does not have: an obvious race to enter next. With two Democrats--Feinstein and Barbara Boxer--occupying California’s U.S. Senate seats, it is not clear where Brown can go to keep her political future alive.

Asked to respond to rumors that she is being mentioned as a possible chairwoman of the national Democratic Party, Brown demurred, saying there was no particular job she was considering.

“I haven’t heard anything,” she said, her eyes suddenly misty. “I haven’t thought of anything. I’m mostly thinking about getting away. And getting time.”

Even if Brown was not ready to plan her next move, political analysts had some suggestions.

“My first thought was, ‘An appointment in the Clinton Administration.’ And my second thought was, ‘What Clinton Administration?’ ” said Sherry Bebitch Jeffe, a political analyst with the Claremont Graduate School.

Many say that before Brown could run again in California, she would have to make amends with fellow Democrats who are smarting from damage done by her sometimes clumsy campaign. Brown’s comments to a national political journal that mischaracterized Feinstein’s record on the death penalty made the Brown campaign look “inept,” according to Barbara O’Connor, director of the Institute for the Study of Politics and Media at Cal State Sacramento.

And when Brown, citing lack of funds, pulled her campaign ads off the air on the last weekend before the election, O’Connor said it was “inexcusable. Now she’s got the whole (Democratic) Party pissed at her. She has some fences to mend.”

Nevertheless, O’Connor and several other experts are not counting Brown out. Running for governor in California is a tough test, they said, and as a veteran of that battle, Brown has qualifications that few others can match. Particularly because she seemed to hit her stride during the last few weeks of her campaign, observers said, Brown has emerged a far better candidate than when she entered the race.

“She wasn’t completely ready for prime time,” said pollster Mervin Field. “(But) this is a good learning experience. She has got unique experience that very few people have.”

Arnold Steinberg, a Republican political consultant, agreed. “She’s only lost once,” he said, rejecting the idea that her days in politics are over. “She’s hardly a perennial loser.”

Clint Reilly, Brown’s campaign chair, emphasized that losing is sometimes part of winning.

“In a state as big as California, developing name identification and getting yourself known to the voters can sometimes be a long process that takes several elections,” said Reilly, adding that he believes Brown’s feisty performance in recent weeks may have begun to separate her identity from those of her father and brother. “If that’s the case . . . I don’t think her (future) opponents will be so easily able to tar her with the sins of her family.”

However, Bruce Cain, a UC Berkeley political science professor, said Brown’s personal opposition to the death penalty may prevent her from winning statewide office anytime soon.

“If she were my friend, I’d say, ‘Find a liberal area that has your concerns about education and the environment,’ ” he said, suggesting perhaps a spot on the Los Angeles City Council. “ ‘Find a constituency that actually wants your type of governing.’ . . . Liberal politicians will find their day and their place. But I just don’t think statewide is that place in time right now.”