Several O.C. Races, Measures Too Close to Call

With Democrats fighting hard to regain a toehold in the Republican fortress of Orange County, Republican Assemblyman Jim Morrissey was locked in a tight battle late Tuesday with challenger Lou Correa for a central county legislative seat.

Morrissey was leading Correa, an Anaheim financial consultant, in the 69th Assembly District in what could become a key race as Democrats try to wrest control of the Legislature’s lower house from the Republicans.

Meanwhile, in the county’s 3rd Supervisorial District, Assemblyman Mickey Conroy (R-Orange) was running behind Deputy Dist. Atty. Todd Spitzer. Mark Leyes, a Garden Grove councilman, and Westminster Mayor Charles V. Smith were running neck and neck in the 1st District.

Measure A, which limits county supervisors to two consecutive four-year terms in office, was winning big in early returns. Similar term-limit measures for city council members were also passing in Buena Park, Costa Mesa, Dana Point, Orange, Laguna Niguel, La Palma and Yorba Linda by large margins.

In the presidential sweepstakes, Republican Bob Dole was running ahead of GOP party registration, but failed to capture the huge margin he needed here to make a competitive showing in the state.

Polls showed early in the campaign that Dole was facing the same problems in Orange County that dogged then-President George Bush when he lost his reelection bid against Clinton in 1992.

The county’s Republican leaders have long boasted that Orange County’s huge GOP registration advantage gives their candidates an important leg up to capture the state. But that edge has disappeared of late.

Bush’s vote tally in 1992 ran 10 points below Republican registration in the county, lower than any GOP presidential candidate in 56 years. And, as usual, Republicans were hoping that Dole would garner the 300,000-vote edge GOP candidates need to overcome a big deficit in Democrat enclaves such as San Francisco and Los Angeles County.

Clinton made inroads in Orange County during the 1992 contest and again this year by getting well-publicized boosts from a number of Republican notables. Clinton also paid visits to the county, something Democrat candidates hadn’t bothered with in many past presidential elections.

Dole tried to counteract that with appearances of his own. The GOP nominee or running mate Jack Kemp visited the county half a dozen times. But even then, the support was less than wildly enthusiastic. During one appearance at the county fairgrounds in Costa Mesa, Dole drew a relatively sparse crowd of about 3,000.

Election day also saw Orange County once again become the focal point of an effort to keep immigrant voters away from the polls.

On Tuesday, a vocal group of half a dozen illegal-immigration foes demonstrated at the intersection of Springdale and Edinger streets in Huntington Beach.

They carried signs and waved American flags warning illegal immigrants not to vote. Their signs said: “U.S. citizens can vote. Violators can be prosecuted.”

“I’m very frightened. There is a good possibility of thousands of noncitizens voting in this election,” said Barbara Coe, a leader of Proposition 187. “Perhaps they will think twice before voting illegally.”

Coe said she had been warned by the Justice Department, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund and California Secretary of State Bill Jones not to scare voters away from the polls.

“I’m pretty beat up, thank you,” concluded Coe, who wore a jacket that looked like an American flag.

In 1988, the county GOP hired uniformed security guards to hold signs warning away illegal immigrant voters in the race for the heavily Latino 69th Assembly District. The tactic spawned a Justice Department investigation and a civil lawsuit settled out of court for $400,000.

Irma Garcia, a Santa Ana mother of three, voted Tuesday for the first time. A registered Democrat, Garcia has lived in the U.S. for 20 years but didn’t receive her citizenship until September. She registered to vote and said the most important thing was to vote against Proposition 209, the measure that would slash many government affirmative action programs in the state.

“I never realized how important it is to be counted,” she said, adding that she voted because she might lose her right to vote. “More than anything, I just want to be counted.”

Garcia also cast a vote for Democrat Loretta Sanchez, the upstart Democrat who was in a heated battle against nine-term Rep. Robert K. Dornan (R-Garden Grove). Garcia said of Sanchez: “She understands us.”

Greg Pierce, an electrician and Republican from Santa Ana, voted for Dornan and Dole.

“Moral issues are paramount to me,” he said. “That’s what I care about. Economics is second. I want people who are honest and who care about other human beings. Clinton lost my vote when signed the bill allowing late-term abortions. That was unspeakably cruel.”

Lois Weldon, who described herself as openly lesbian, said she voted for Clinton and Sanchez. She is a painter who works for the county. “Bob Dornan doesn’t like people like me,” she said. “He doesn’t like minorities of any kind.”

Republicans continued to dominate, meanwhile, in other races for Congress and the state Legislature.

Aside from Dornan, five other Republican congressmen were defending their Orange County seats--Dana Rohrabacher of Huntington Beach, Christopher Cox of Newport Beach, Jay C. Kim of Diamond Bar, Ed Royce of Anaheim and Ron Packard of Oceanside. All were headed for easy victories.

In the Legislature, two incumbent state senators easily held onto their seats. Meanwhile, Assembly Speaker Curt Pringle (R-Garden Grove) was counting on his Orange County colleagues to help maintain GOP control of the lower house.

Among those running was freshman Assemblyman Scott Baugh (R-Huntington Beach), who is battling wrongdoing charges stemming from his election last year to the seat in a recall. In the 71st Assembly District, Republican newcomer Bill Campbell won a statehouse seat.

In the supervisorial races, Conroy and Leyes were considered the favorites because they were backed to varying degrees by the powerful county GOP establishment. Conroy won the March primary in the 3rd District over eight other candidates, and Leyes finished second among five hopefuls for the 1st District seat.

The two campaigns began in earnest as far back as last year in the wake of the county bankruptcy when 3rd District Supervisor Gaddi H. Vasquez resigned and 1st District Supervisor Roger R. Stanton announced he would not seek reelection after 16 years on the board.

Even before the two new members take their seats, a third new supervisor will be named by Gov. Pete Wilson--perhaps as early as this week--to replace 5th District Supervisor Marian Bergeson. The supervisor has accepted a post as Wilson’s top education advisor.

That means the five-member board will have three new faces by January, giving the newcomers unusual clout. Supervisors William G. Steiner and Jim Silva, who represent the county’s 4th and 2nd districts, respectively, are the only two returning members.

On state ballot measures, Orange County voters were backing Proposition 209, which would slash affirmative action programs, by a 2-to-1 ratio in early returns.

On Proposition 215, the medical marijuana initiative, the county’s typically conservative electorate was divided almost evenly.

But the county electorate was running true to form on Proposition 218, which would require a vote before cities could impose new taxes. They were heavily supporting it in early returns.

Also contributing to this report was Times staff writer Dexter Filkins.

* GOP DOMINATING: Save one race, Republicans appear poised to sweep Orange County’s nine state legislative seats. B1

* O.C. RACES: Anaheim hotel tax, measures imposing term limits on supervisors and seven cities’ councils were heading toward victory. B1

* KEYS TO VICTORY: A growing economy and a manageable world scene contributed to President Clinton’s comeback victory. A12

* PANETTA’S FUTURE: The chief of staff will soon announce his plans to leave the White House, aides say. A13

Full coverage: A10-28, A32

State-by-state roundup: A22-23

Orange County coverage: B1, B5-6

State and local returns: A26-28

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