Pringle to Head GOP in Assembly : Legislature: Orange County conservative is elected by Republicans to replace Jim Brulte. He is a leading foe of Speaker Doris Allen.

Regrouping after their summer recess, Assembly Republicans on Monday elected Curt Pringle of Garden Grove as their new leader, choosing a staunch conservative over another candidate with more moderate political views.

Pringle, 36, replaces Jim Brulte (R-Rancho Cucamonga), who resigned Friday after nearly three years as Republican leader to focus on a planned campaign for the state Senate next year.

An outspoken foe of Speaker Doris Allen, Pringle beat more moderate Republican Fred Aguiar of Chino for the leadership job. A third candidate, conservative Assemblyman Bruce Thompson (R-Fallbrook), made a late run for the post but failed to attract much support.

In choosing Pringle, Republicans picked an aggressive legislator known for his knowledge of budget issues and his strong embrace of the conservative agenda--from less government to lower taxes and breaks for California businesses.

This year, he rose in prominence by carrying Gov. Pete Wilson’s budget bill and assuming the chairmanship of the Appropriations Committee. He was later stripped of that post by Allen (R-Cypress), who was elected by Democratic members in a move that infuriated Pringle and other Republicans. Since then, Pringle has become a vocal leader in the movement to recall the embattled Speaker.

On Monday, Pringle said his priorities as Republican leader would be to promote tort reform, less regulation and tax relief for businesses in California. He said that while he supports the Allen recall, he would try to put his feelings aside for the good of the party.

“Personally, there has been conflict [between us],” Pringle said. “I hope that there won’t be from now on, but . . . it’s very difficult to say.”

As for relations with the governor, Pringle conceded that he might encounter conflict. Unlike his two predecessors, he is not as closely allied with Wilson and said he does not endorse the governor for the GOP nomination for President. Instead, he backs Sen. Phil Gramm of Texas.

The Assembly majority leader has no real structural power, instead using persuasion to unite members behind party initiatives. In recent decades, the leader has also assumed responsibility for raising money to get GOP members reelected and to topple Democrats who are seen as being vulnerable. Brulte, for example, was widely credited for helping Republicans win a 41-39 Assembly majority in 1994.

Typically, the majority leader is a candidate for even bigger things, such as Assembly Speaker. But some observers said Pringle’s reputation as a hard-core GOP warrior might make it tough for him to attract the support needed to win the speakership--if Republicans manage to oust Allen in a recall election later this year.

“Some people may perceive me” as too partisan to be Speaker, Pringle conceded Monday.

Pringle’s political history has been marked by hard work and persistence in the face of defeat. He ran unsuccessfully for Garden Grove City Council three times starting at the age of 20. But he was elected to the Assembly before his 30th birthday in a district that had been dominated by Democrats for years.

During his first term, Pringle--who was an Eagle Scout as a youth--played the role of Republican loyalist, rarely straying from his strict conservative beliefs. He also was the target of attacks from Democrats eager to regain his Assembly seat.

He is perhaps most notorious for an episode on Election Day in 1988, when Pringle’s campaign team and the Orange County GOP hired uniformed security guards to stand outside heavily minority voting places. Outraged Latino activists said the tactic threw the close election to Pringle, and it became a rallying point for those seeking to dethrone the bespectacled conservative.

The Democrats managed to do that in 1990, so Pringle returned to the family drapery business--and plotted his return. After redistricting put his home in a different district in 1992, he ran and easily captured a safe Republican Assembly seat. Back in the capital, Pringle had a leg up on all other GOP freshmen, rising quickly in the ranks of leadership to become Brulte’s lieutenant and heir apparent.

Pringle was elected leader after a series of three votes. In the first, he received 20 votes, Aguiar got nine and Thompson got eight. Then came a head-to-head matchup between Pringle and Aguiar, which Pringle won, 25 to 14. Finally, the caucus took a voice vote in which all Republicans except Brian Setencich of Fresno declared their support for the Orange County conservative.

Speaker Allen was not present for the votes. Setencich said he declined to support Pringle because he believes that Aguiar would have been “a better choice in terms of working with the Speaker to move policy forward.”

Aguiar, 46, has a reputation as a consensus builder with more moderate politics than Pringle. A second-term assemblyman, he is considered one of the friendliest lawmakers in Sacramento--and a likely candidate for Speaker if the Allen recall succeeds. After the vote Monday, Pringle appointed Aguiar assistant majority leader.

In a reflection of how term limits have increased turnover in the Legislature, 34 of the 40 members of the GOP caucus have known no leader other than Brulte--who has been GOP leader for only three years. In an interview, Brulte said it would take Pringle and his Republican brethren some time to become accustomed to their new relationship.

“You assert your leadership over a period of time as Republican leader,” Brulte said. “I was elected in November of 1992. In my mind I did not become Republican leader until six months later. It took me that long to feel comfortable. It’s a learning experience.”

Times staff writer Max Vanzi contributed to this article.

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Profile: Curt Pringle

Third-term Assemblyman Curt Pringle (R-Garden Grove) was elected by Republicans on Monday to be majority leader in the state Assembly. His task as leader will be to keep members united behind major party initiatives and to help raise money to get GOP candidates elected to the Assembly.

* Born: June 27, 1959; age 36.

* Residence: Garden Grove.

* Education: Completed high school in Los Alamitos; graduated from Cal State Long Beach with a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a master’s degree in public administration.

* Career highlights: Ran unsuccessfully for Garden Grove City Council three times starting at the age of 20. Served as vice chairman of the Orange County Republican Party and helped his father run a firm manufacturing vertical blinds and other window coverings. Elected to Assembly for one term in 1988, then defeated in 1990 by Democrat Tom Umberg. Political redistricting gave him a second chance in a new district, which he captured in 1992 and retained in 1994. Has served as Republican whip and assistant leader of Assembly GOP caucus.

* Interests: Politics and half-court basketball.

* Family: Wife, Alexis, and two children, ages 8 and 5.

* Quote: “I consider myself a very direct conservative.”