<i> A behind-the-scenes look at Orange County’s political life</i> : Local GOP Congressmen Line Up for Their Share of the Spoils of Victory

Friends of Newt: Republicans who for so long were out of power in Congress are now almost beside themselves as they begin wrestling for perks, top committee assignments and other symbols of power that will show who’s really in.

Although committee assignments won’t be official until the next session begins Jan. 4, Republicans are lining up for top spots amid much uncertainty as Newt Gingrich, the House Speaker-in-waiting, restructures the committees. Right in the middle of the scramble are Orange County’s congressmen who, despite having low seniority, are making known their own “wish lists”:

* Rep. Christopher Cox of Newport Beach: As the ranking Republican on the Subcommittee on Commerce, Consumer and Monetary Affairs of the Committee on Government Operations, Cox is likely to become chairman of that panel.

* Rep. Robert K. Dornan of Garden Grove: Because he lost seniority when he moved from his former Santa Monica district to Orange County, Dornan now ranks 10th out of 22 Republicans on the Armed Services Committee. But he’s angling to chair a subcommittee: either Oversight and Investigations or Military Forces and Personnel.

* Rep. Jay C. Kim of Diamond Bar: As a freshman, he served on the House committees on Public Works and Transportation and Small Business. As usual, he was unavailable for comment.

* Rep. Ron Packard of Carlsbad: Because he has supported Rep. Robert L. Livingston (R-La.) as the new acting chairman of the powerful House Appropriations Committee, he could cash in his chits for a subcommittee chairmanship.

* Rep. Dana Rohrabacher of Huntington Beach: As the second-ranking Republican on the District of Columbia committee, Rohrabacher might have become its next chairman if a) Gingrich had decided to keep it and b) Rohrabacher had wanted it, which he doesn’t. As a member of the Science, Space and Technology Committee, Rohrabacher would like to chair its space subcommittee.

* Rep. Ed Royce of Fullerton: A freshman in the current term, Royce is still looking at what will be available as the shake-up continues. He serves on the House committees on Foreign Affairs and Science, Space and Technology.

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Silver linings: It may seem like a thankless job, but Orange County Democratic Party Chairwoman Dorianne Garcia says she’s willing, even eager, to do it again.

Undaunted by the party’s dismal showing in the election, Garcia says she’s decided to run again for the two-year post and feels confident of winning it when the party’s central committee votes on new officers in January. Her first goal? “To keep the momentum going that we had going into the last few weeks before the election,” she says.

Momentum? The Democrats managed to lose the only electoral toehold they had in Orange County--the Assembly seat Tom Umberg gave up to run unsuccessfully for attorney general--when Democrat Mike Metzler lost in a squeaker to Republican Jim Morrissey. Worse yet, in nearly half the local legislative and congressional races, Republicans won with at least 70% of the vote.

Never mind, Garcia says, she’s encouraged by the steady trickle of calls coming into Democratic headquarters from people shocked by the party’s drubbing at the polls. “I think a lot of Democrats here are actually waking up at this point to see that they need to get involved, not just vote,” she says.

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Here comes the judge: Election Day contests only decided the winners. Post-election courtroom battles may decide who lied.

Assemblyman-elect Jim Morrissey in central Orange County’s 69th District is the latest candidate to sue his unsuccessful Democratic opponent. In his suit, Morrissey claims opponent Mike Metzler and the California Democratic Party allegedly lied in a series of 11th-hour “hit pieces” when they claimed that Morrissey had a “secret plan” to keep Latinos from voting in the election.

Morrissey’s fellow Republicans threatened to watch Latino polling places for possible voter fraud, but Morrissey tried to distance himself from the effort. “The 69th Assembly District has a long history of sleazy campaigns and this time they went too far,” Morrissey says in a statement.

Metzler calls the lawsuit “silly,” adding: “I don’t think it’s coincidental that the man who got him to run and helped lead the campaign was the same individual who talked about poll guards in the election.” Metzler is referring to Assemblyman Mickey Conroy (R-Orange), who first raised the voter fraud issue.

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You know you’ve really made it when . . .: On a visit last week to a Washington, D.C., tavern, Rohrabacher, the Huntington Beach congressman, was tickled to discover one of his campaign bumper stickers--the one showing a surfboard and the slogan “Congressman Dana Rohrabacher: Fighting for Freedom and Having Fun”--among a collection adorning the walls. But Hugh Kelly, the proprietor of Kelly’s Irish Times and a practical man, confesses that he waited to see if Rohrabacher actually won reelection before going to the expense of framing an accompanying photo of the congressman, complete with surfboard. Now he will, Kelly promises.

Going to the Polls

Voter turnout in Orange County for the past three gubernatorial elections has steadily increased.

Registration Turnout 1994 1,170,072 *65.5% 1990 1,090,954 62 1986 1,090,137 60

* Unofficial total

Source: Orange County registrar of voters

Compiled by Times staff writer Rebecca Trounson, with contributions by staff writers Gebe Martinez and Faye Fiore.

Politics ’94 appears every Sunday.