ELECTIONS / STATE SENATE : Upstart Puts a Scare Into Veteran in 27th District : Beverly: The four-term Republican legislator stresses his long experience and his support of the free-enterprise system.

SACRAMENTO —  As he seeks his fifth term, state Sen. Robert G. Beverly seems to fit the central casting stereotype of a veteran politician.

The 67-year-old lawyer and onetime Marine corporal looks and sounds the part: white-haired, square-jawed, a hint of his native New England in his gravelly voice and a cigar occasionally protruding from his mouth.

The Long Beach Republican acts the part too, with an easygoing and accommodating manner that has won him friends among lobbyists and legislators on both sides of the aisle. As a lawmaker, his interests have ranged from such local pet projects as securing funds to repair the Manhattan Beach Pier to revisions of California’s Business Code.

Beverly, who trumpets his support of the free-enterprise system, has relied on the business community, especially bankers, insurance firms and real estate agents, to fill his campaign coffers. Now, he is spending the money--estimated at well over $500,000 this year--to fend off a challenge in Tuesday’s election from an upstart, underfunded Democrat in the new 27th Senate District.

In any other year, Beverly’s credentials as a longtime member of the Senate’s inner circle would be expected to propel him to an easy victory in the district, which stretches from the gated community of Rolling Hills on the Palos Verdes Peninsula to suburban Downey.

But this is an unpredictable political season.

Beverly acknowledges that the race against little-known Democrat Brian Finander is his toughest contest since 1976, when he first won his seat by outdistancing Democratic state Sen. James Q. Wedworth (D-Torrance). Among the reasons Beverly cites are that nearly half the district is new to him, along with mounting “anti-incumbent feeling and the generally unsettled state of the electorate.”

He notes that his own polls last month showed President Bush trailing Democrat Bill Clinton in the 27th District, political turf that is marginally Democratic but traditionally votes Republican.

Beverly does not shrink from the label of career politician, using the slogan “proven leadership, proven results” and boasting: “I don’t apologize for being an incumbent.”

But being a veteran politician with a long record makes Beverly a target for criticism from Finander, who charges that in the last quarter of a century, the dean of South Bay legislators has paid too little attention to his constituents--and too much to lobbyists and their clients.

Finander maintains that Beverly “basically jumps through hoops for them,” adding that “virtually all of his money comes from corporate special interests.”

A review of Beverly’s contributions over the last five years shows that as of Sept. 30, he had collected $577,000, according to Capitol OnLine, a computerized information service. A breakdown by the service shows the largest donations coming from physicians and other health groups, followed by financial institutions, real estate and development firms, the insurance industry, and horse racing and other gambling interests.

As an example of Beverly’s ties to special interests, Finander points out that Beverly took a campaign contribution from Anheuser-Busch and carried on the Senate floor a bill to allow the brewing giant to sell hard liquor at its Sea World park in San Diego.

Campaign records show that the brewer contributed $2,000 to Beverly this year, but the senator denied any relationship between the donation and his actions in June on the Sea World bill. Beverly said the brewing industry generally has supported him, but maintained, “I haven’t been a lackey for them.”

Beverly shrugged off questions about whether he is too close to special interests, saying it is logical for businesses to support him because he believes in the free enterprise system and pushes for less government regulation of business.

“I’m their natural ally,” Beverly said.

And Beverly acknowledges that he hobnobs with lobbyists and others who throw Sacramento receptions. “I feel somewhat obligated, particularly when constituents are in Sacramento,” to stop by an event, Beverly said.

During the legislative session, Beverly also attends the Derby Club, a weekly luncheon group whose members are restricted to legislators and lobbyists. At the lunches at a restaurant near the Capitol, lobbyist Frank Murphy typically buys Beverly and several other lawmakers a bottle of wine, according to a compilation prepared by Capitol OnLine.

Murphy, who served in the Assembly with Beverly, said there’s “nothing sinister, nothing diabolical” about the club, which is regarded by lawmakers as a throwback to a less contentious era in Sacramento. Beverly compares his attendance to a businessman dropping by a service club luncheon.

Murphy says Beverly sometimes opposes bills sought by his clients. “Bob is a very mature, reflective guy,” Murphy said. “He’ll never be personal, vindictive or mean. He’s got really good judgment.”

In an interview, Beverly said that in 1991, he and his wife bought a Sacramento condominium owned by longtime lobbyist Sandy Klagge. Beverly says he was once a neighbor of Klagge’s and has known the lobbyist and her family for 15 years or so. He says that the condominium was appraised and that he paid fair market value for it. He reported the transaction on his annual economic disclosure statement.

Beverly’s supporters say his reelection prospects were thrown into doubt by the recent reapportionment, the redrawing of legislative district boundaries carried out once each decade to account for population shifts.

With population growth in inland areas, Beverly’s new district was pulled eastward into such new turf as Lakewood, Bellflower, Artesia, Hawaiian Gardens and Downey, where voters are unfamiliar with him.

The shift also forced Beverly to switch his voting address from Manhattan Beach to the Long Beach condominium of a friend. He says he will find a more permanent arrangement if he wins reelection.

In the new turf, Democrats hold an edge in registration over Republicans, 47% to 41%, although voters there historically have leaned to GOP candidates.

But Beverly is taking no chances; he is not relying on the power of incumbency to propel him back into office. His caution is prompted by the apparent volatility of the electorate, which is fueled, in part, by the hard-hit Southern California economy.

Despite voting Republican at the top of the ticket, many of the district’s voters typically swing between the parties. Part of the district is now represented by Sen. Cecil N. Green (D-Norwalk), who won two bitterly fought races against Republicans but has turned around and endorsed Republican Beverly.

The swing voters appear tailored for the middle-of-the road politics of Beverly, who calls himself “a progressive conservative” who is not a “Stone Age Republican.” He supports abortion rights and has the backing of the powerful California Teachers Assn. But he also touts himself as an economic conservative, who in 1978 supported the property tax-cutting Proposition 13.

Beverly has also attracted widespread support from local elected officials. Even retiring Democratic Assemblyman Richard E. Floyd of Carson expressed kind thoughts about Beverly. He predicted that Beverly would coast to victory, saying, “real politicians always run scared.”

“If he’s scared, then the Easter bunny is coming on Halloween instead of hobgoblins,” Floyd said. “Beverly wins and wins big.”

For Beverly, the election is the capstone of a 35-year political career because term limits prohibit him from running for the Senate again.

The Massachusetts native moved to Los Angeles in 1946 after a stint in the Marine Corps. He attended UCLA as an undergraduate and graduated from Loyola University Law School before beginning to practice law in 1952. He eventually started a Los Angeles firm with Richard Richards, who was a longtime Democratic state senator, and last year received between $10,000 and $100,000 a year income from the practice, according to his economic disclosure statement.

As a law student, Beverly became active in Republican Party politics and later in Manhattan Beach community affairs. In 1958, he launched his political career, capturing a seat on the Manhattan Beach City Council.

He is married and has four grown children and eight grandchildren. Last spring, one of his sons, William, mounted an unsuccessful South Bay congressional campaign.

Taking a seat in the Assembly in 1967, Beverly soon became a Republican legislative leader. In 1976, he jumped to the Senate, where he has enjoyed a close personal and political relationship with Republican Leader Ken Maddy (R-Fresno).

Underscoring his senior status, Beverly serves on the five-member Senate Rules Committee, a kind of council of elders that controls the flow of legislative business and housekeeping matters.

Although he is approaching 70, Beverly said he is “in generally good health.” After his years in Sacramento, he makes clear that he wants another victory to wind up his career on a winning note.

Candidates’ Stands on the Issues

These are the major party candidates’ positions on key issues in the 27th Senate District:

The Economy and Jobs

Beverly says a state lawmaker can do little to improve the economy because the recession affects the entire world, not just Southern California. However, he says the state can improve the business climate by making it more attractive for employers to stay in California. One way, he says, is to speed the process of granting environmental clearances for businesses.

Finander, noting that no single program will turn the state’s economy around, says he would work to make the state more friendly to business. He supports a “Buy California” plan that would give preference to California companies in bids for state projects. He also wants to streamline the regulatory bureaucracy by creating “one-stop” service for businesses seeking approval of new projects.

Welfare Reform

Finander opposes Proposition 165, Gov. Pete Wilson’s initiative to cut welfare grants, because he fears the budgetary powers included in the measure would allow the governor to become an “economic dictator.” But he supports other reform proposals, including those requiring recipients to complete remedial education and job training. He also favors limiting the length of time any one family or individual may receive welfare.

Beverly lists welfare as a serious problem because the number of cases is increasing dramatically. He favors Proposition 165, particularly the provisions designed to keep young women with children from dropping out of school and those penalizing a welfare mother for bearing another child.

Abortion

Beverly supports abortion rights and Roe vs. Wade, the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision on abortion. However, he opposes unrestricted abortion rights for minors, saying he favors requiring parental consent for teen-agers seeking an abortion.

Finander, who describes himself as “lifelong pro-choice,” supports abortion rights and opposes any government restrictions of those rights. Although he would like to find a way to encourage girls to discuss abortion with their parents, he opposes parental consent laws requiring them to do so.

Workers’ Compensation Reform

Finander supports reforms of the current system, including requiring that stress disability claimants prove that at least 50% of their stress is work-related. Currently, only 10% of stress must be work-related.

Beverly favors reforms in the system to limit stress claims, enact stricter penalties for fraud and restrict physicians referring patients to laboratories they own.

School Vouchers

Both Beverly and Finander oppose providing a voucher or tax credits so parents can send their children to private rather than public schools. Both say they think vouchers would take money away from public schools and be a windfall for the parents of children who already attend private schools.

Death Penalty

Both Beverly and Finander support the death penalty.