Republicans Take Early Leads in Key Valley Races

With only a handful of ballots counted, Republican candidates were leading their Democratic challengers in the San Fernando Valley’s most hotly contested congressional and state legislative races Tuesday.

Veteran legislator Paula Boland had jumped out ahead of her Democratic opponent, former federal prosecutor Adam Schiff, on the strength of absentee ballots in the race for the state Senate seat vacated by the retirement of Newt Russell (R-Glendale).

“The numbers look good,” Boland said from her election night party in Glendale, where she greeted supporters wearing a flowing red evening gown and a beaming smile.

“The Democrats thought they were going to come in here and bomb this district. And they are going to bomb out.”

In the contest for a congressional seat, Republican businessman Richard Sybert was leading Democrat Brad Sherman, who was making his first run for national office.

Still, the mood at Sherman headquarters in Woodland Hills was upbeat, with the 44-year-old tax official talking and acting like a winner. “You mean we’re only 2,000 votes behind on the absentee ballots?” he yelled to a campaign worker. “That’s great news. I was expecting we’d be 14% to 15% behind on the absentees.”

And in the race for the other open congressional seat, state Assemblyman James E. Rogan (R-Glendale) was leading his Democratic opponent, Doug Kahn, in absentee and early ballots.

Rogan told his supporters at a Republican party at the Glendale Red Lion hotel that the race was still “in the jury’s hands” late Tuesday. But, said Rogan, a former judge and trial attorney, “I feel a lot better about this than some of the trials I’ve had.”

On the state level, Republican John Geranios was leading Democrat Scott Wildman for the 43rd Assembly District seat.

With only a smattering of precincts reporting, Geranios told supporters at what was billed as a Republican victory party that he was confident of a win. “Our community is a common-sense Republican community and the Democrats have no place here,” he said.

Valley legislative races this year were influenced by the battles over which party would win control of the statehouse and Congress.

For local candidates, this power struggle translated into a barrage of attention and, more importantly, campaign dollars.

In the Boland-Schiff race, for example, the Republican Party poured $489,000 Boland’s way in the past 10 days, while Schiff received $290,800 from the Democrats.

First-time candidates who might not have had their phone calls to the state party returned in other election years were sudden beneficiaries of tens of thousands of dollars.

Party luminaries, ranging from President Clinton to House Speaker Newt Gingrich dropped by to help with fund-raising.

As a result, races in districts where either party was considered to have a fighting chance at prevailing took on even more ferocity than usual.

Attack mail was plentiful and particularly nasty.

On the national level, the Valley had the only two open congressional seats, and both parties went after them aggressively.

The 24th District seat, open because of the retirement of veteran Rep. Anthony Beilenson (D-Woodland Hills), was the No. 1 target of congressional Republicans.

Sybert nearly knocked off Beilenson two years ago and has never stopped campaigning, so he had a leg up on Democrat Sherman. Sherman, a member of the State Board of Equalization and not a household name, was not considered the heaviest hitter his party could have recruited.

Much of the campaign rhetoric was aimed at capturing moderate, swing voters and Republican women. Sherman questioned Sybert’s commitment on abortion rights, while Sybert sought to portray Sherman as a tax-and-spend liberal.

In the 27th Congressional District, Democrat Kahn repeatedly told voters in this middle-class Glendale, Burbank and Pasadena district that he was the moderate choice to replace retiring Rep. Carlos Moorhead (R-Glendale).

Fighting an uphill battle against Rogan, a popular GOP opponent, Kahn’s mail hammered away at Rogan as being a clone of Gingrich.

Seeking to blunt his right-wing views, Rogan sent out mail featuring his life story as the son of a welfare mother and high school dropout who overcame the odds and became an attorney, judge and legislator.

Another retirement, that of state Russell, opened the door for the race between Boland (R-Granada Hills) and Schiff.

Schiff, who lost an Assembly race to Rogan two years ago, started his race early, built a solid campaign organization and practiced ground-level, shoe-leather politics.

While Schiff walked precincts and gathered support from local law enforcement groups and elected officials, Boland was otherwise engaged in Sacramento.

She spent the spring and summer fighting for passage of a bill to ease the way for the Valley to secede from Los Angeles. That gave Boland the kind of publicity candidates yearn for. Although she was running in a new district, most observers saw the race as hers to lose.

There were also spirited contests in the 43rd and 44th Assembly districts, which are nestled within the state Senate’s 21st District boundaries.

After a bruising GOP primary, self-funded candidate Geranios’ biggest problem in the 43rd District appeared to be mending fences with his Republican base.

Then, teachers union official Wildman, who had not been viewed as potent competition in this Republican-leaning district, caught fire. The state party dumped money his way, and the race turned surprisingly tight.

In the 44th District, incumbent Assemblyman Bill Hoge (R-Pasadena) was considered likely to prevail easily. But then popular former community college president Jack Scott signed on for the Democrats, giving Hoge a run for his money.

In three other congressional races, the incumbents were expected to win.

In the 25th Congressional District, Rep. Howard P. “Buck” McKeon (R-Santa Clarita) was opposed by Santa Clarita Democrat Diane Trautman, a homemaker. In the 26th Congressional District, Rep. Howard L. Berman (D-Panorama City) was opposed by CPA Bill Glass, a Sherman Oaks Republican. In the 29th Congressional District, Rep. Henry Waxman was opposed by GOP businessman Paul Stepanek.

In state Senate contests:

Assemblyman William “Pete” Knight (R-Palmdale) was expected to win over Democrat Steven A. Figueroa. Incumbent Sen. Cathie Wright (R-Simi Valley) was favored over Democrat John Birke, an attorney.

Sen. Tom Hayden (D-Los Angeles) was expected to hold his 23rd District seat. His GOP challenger was Scott Schreiber, a businessman.

In state Assembly contests:

Former Assemblyman Tom McClintock, a Republican, is expected to prevail over Democrat Jon Lauritzen, a teacher, in the 38th District.

In the 39th District, Democrat Tony Cardenas, a businessman, was expected to become the first Latino state legislator from the Valley. His Republican rival was businessman Ollie M. McCaulley.

Democrat Bob Hertzberg faced Republican businessman H.R. Ron Culver in the heavily Democratic 40th Assembly District. In the 41st District, Assemblywoman Sheila Kuehl (D-Santa Monica) was favored over Republican businessman Mark Boos Benhard.

Assemblyman Wally Knox (D-Los Angeles) was expected to coast to a second term over opponent Adam Ross.

Also contributing to this story were Times staff writers Hugo Martin, Steve Barry, Andrew Blankstein, Eric Slater and correspondents Dade Hayes and Darrell Satzman.

VALLEY EDITION

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

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

TV COVERAGE: Election night bugaboo returned--network projections based on exit polls, reports critic Howard Rosenberg. A28

EAGER VOTERS: The Southland’s newest citizens went to the polls eagerly. Many said they hoped to defeat Prop. 209. B1