Cardenas, Boland Lead in Early Valley Vote

Realtor Tony Cardenas led four other Democrats vying to succeed Assemblyman Richard Katz (D-Sylmar), and GOP Assemblywoman Paula Boland of Granada Hills moved a step closer to a new job in the state Senate on Tuesday as early ballots were tallied in San Fernando Valley-area races.

Assemblyman James Rogan easily won the GOP nomination to succeed retiring Rep. Carlos Moorhead (R-Glendale), while businessman Doug Kahn was ahead of former Screen Actors Guild President Barry Gordon for the Democratic nod.

Meanwhile, businessman John Geranios pulled ahead of seven other Republicans competing for the Burbank-Glendale Assembly seat being vacated by Rogan.

And former Assemblyman Tom McClintock was headed for a political comeback in the northwest Valley’s 38th Assembly District, leading five other Republicans.

With a number of Valley incumbents leaving office due to retirement or term limits, there are more open seats in the region this year than at any time in recent memory. Departing incumbents left a slew of candidates slugging it out for two congressional seats, one state Senate seat and five Assembly slots.

Perhaps the most closely watched local race was the campaign to succeed Katz in the heavily Latino 39th Assembly District in the northeast Valley. Katz, the Assembly’s Democratic leader, must vacate his seat due to term limits.

“Certainly it would be premature to predict victory or defeat . . . but the only thing on my mind right now is victory,” said a visibly tired Cardenas at an election night party at a restaurant in Sunland.

At the race’s outset, most of the public attention was captured by Cardenas, who was handpicked by Latino political leaders Los Angeles Councilman Richard Alarcon and state Sen. Richard Polanco (D-Los Angeles) to become the Valley’s first Latino state lawmaker.

But Cardenas soon faced strong challenges from attorney Valerie Salkin and legislative aide Jim Dantona. Salkin and Dantona later eclipsed Cardenas in fund-raising by dipping into their own pocketbooks or winning the support of special-interest groups.

Salkin, a lawyer with the State Board of Equalization, picked up support from women’s groups and numerous Westside friends and bankrolled her campaign with personal loans totaling $80,000.

Dantona’s bid also gained momentum as he gathered endorsements from a number of law enforcement groups, labor unions and other special interests ranging from dentists to independent businesses.

Although the early stages of the race were marked by relative civility among the candidates, they resorted to mudslinging as election day approached.

Dantona mailed fliers to voters attacking Salkin as a spoiled brat who waffled on the death penalty. Salkin countered with mailers focusing on Dantona’s financial and legal problems.

Cardenas tossed barbs at both his opponents for moving into the district relatively recently and trying to buy the seat. In return, Cardenas was hit with revelations that he failed to vote in both the 1992 and 1994 primaries.

In the state Senate’s 21st District, which encompasses Glendale, Burbank and parts of the northeast Valley, Assemblywoman Boland emerged as the early leader in what had been a three-way battle for the Republican nomination.

“It feels good,” Boland said. “I think it means people believe in my message and what I’ve been doing in the last 5 1/2 years.”

Boland, a central figure in the effort to break up the mammoth Los Angeles school system, was running in a new area, but had the edge in name recognition. Businessman Robert Oltman, however, ran a strong campaign that took Boland to task for carpetbagging.

Boland tried to portray herself as the most conservative Republican. She hit hard at Oltman, who let it slip at two public forums that he voted against Proposition 187, the anti-illegal immigration measure. She also attacked him for opposing expansion of the death penalty, a charge he denied.

The attacks became so bad that Oltman sued Boland for libel. Oltman and the third candidate, Wilbert Smith, an aide to Gov. Pete Wilson, signed a joint statement decrying Boland’s tactics. Smith moved into contention after winning the endorsement of outgoing state Sen. Newt Russell (R-Pasadena).

On the Democratic side, former federal prosecutor Adam Schiff ran unopposed.

The retirement this year of veteran Rep. Moorhead opened a seat in the 27th Congressional District, which includes Burbank, Glendale and portions of the northeast Valley.

In early returns, Republican Assemblyman Rogan, who represents part of the area now, was cruising to an easy victory over a political unknown.

On the Democratic side, businessman Kahn led ex-actors guild chief Gordon after a campaign that closed on a distinctly nasty note as the two exchanged a flurry of attack mailers.

In one, Kahn charged that Gordon, during his guild presidency, had covered up for a theatrical agent who had sexually assaulted actresses seeking his representation, a charge Gordon denied.

Gordon responded with a mailer criticizing Kahn for suing a retarded adult who lived in a group home next door. Kahn said he sued only after failing in other efforts to prevent the throwing of large rocks at his home and yard that endangered his children.

While Gordon won key endorsements from the labor unions, women’s groups and the Democratic Party, Kahn has run twice before in the district and is better known there.

In the Republican-leaning 43rd Assembly District, which also includes Burbank and Glendale, businessman Geranios emerged as the leader in the eight-way battle for the GOP nomination. Rogan is leaving the seat to run for Congress.

“It’s very exciting . . . particularly because we were so viciously attacked,” said Geranios, a first-time candidate.

In the 24th Congressional District, covering parts of the West Valley, State Board of Equalization member Brad Sherman was outdistancing six other Democrats for his party’s nomination. On the GOP side, businessman Richard Sybert led two other Republicans. Sybert lost a 1994 race to veteran Democratic incumbent Anthony C. Beilenson (D-Woodland Hills), who is retiring this year.

In the Antelope Valley’s 36th Assembly District, a GOP stronghold, Republican George Runner Jr. led three other GOP candidates.

Attorney Bob Hertzberg led Francine Oschin, an aide to Los Angeles City Councilman Hal Bernson, for the Democratic nomination in the race to replace incumbent Assemblywoman Barbara Friedman (D-Van Nuys), who is also being forced out of office by term limits.

Mike Antonovich, seeking a fifth term as county supervisor, led his only challenger, Deputy County Assessor Dan Kumaus, in the 5th District race in early returns.

Times correspondents Jill Leovy and Kate Folmar contributed to this story.