Winner in Assembly Race Agrees to Give Up Office

A Republican who won an Assembly race in November agreed Friday to give up the Inland Empire seat and plead guilty to two misdemeanor campaign finance violations.

In an agreement with California Atty. Gen. Bill Lockyer, Assemblywoman-elect Jan Leja, a former mayor of Beaumont, agreed not to be sworn in, leaving the seat vacant until Gov. Gray Davis calls a special election early next year.

The seat had been held by Brett Granlund (R-Yucaipa), who was forced to retire from the Assembly because of term limits. The district covers portions of Riverside and San Bernardino counties.

Leja agreed to plead guilty to charges to be filed next week in Riverside County. She faces fines to be set by the court.

A former aide to Senate Republican leader Jim Brulte of Rancho Cucamonga, Leja broke the Fair Political Practices Act by filing false campaign finance reports, inflating her reported contributions by more than $146,000 in 1999 in an attempt to scare off challengers.

Leja acknowledged during the campaign that she had made false statements. On Friday, she said her decision to step down was “in the best interest of the citizens . . . myself and my family.” A protracted court battle “would ultimately jeopardize my children’s entire financial future.”

In her campaign reports, Leja falsely claimed that her husband had given her a $50,000 loan, that she had received $37,685 in donations of less than $100, and that she had received $58,325 in donations of more than $100, the attorney general’s office said in a statement.

Leja beat two Republican candidates in an expensive March 7 primary. The district has long been held by Republicans.

Candidates often boast about their campaign fund-raising success to dissuade candidates from running against them. It’s rare, however, for one to go so far as to break the law by falsifying documents. In 1982, former State Board of Equalization member Conway Collis was fined $15,000 by the Fair Political Practices Commission for inflating his reports by $145,000.

Leja’s decision will leave Republicans with 29 seats in the 80-seat Assembly.

Leja defeated Democrat Ray R. Quinto on Nov. 7. The margin of victory was 47% to 43%.