Suburban Races Are Key Battlegrounds

Half a dozen Assembly races in Los Angeles County are being carefully watched by both major political parties.

In the battle for control of the Legislature, most of the 24 seats on ballots around the county are not expected to change party hands in the fall, even though incumbents will not be on the ballot in seven of them.

The exceptions are the 43rd, 44th, 53rd, 54th, 56th and 60th districts, all in suburban areas that can no longer be counted sure bets by either party.

The 53rd District, which runs from Venice to part of the Palos Verdes Peninsula, and the adjoining 54th District, which includes much of the peninsula, San Pedro, parts of Long Beach and Hawaiian Gardens, feature hot primary contests.

In the 53rd, seven Democrats are competing to face Republican Bill Eggers in the fall in this swing district. Next door, the heat is all in the GOP primary--four Republicans are battling to be their party’s standard-bearer. The likely Democratic nominee is Long Beach Councilman Alan Lowenthal.

The other contested primary lies in the 60th District on the eastern edge of the county, where four Republicans are competing for a seat being vacated by Assemblyman Gary Miller, who is challenging Rep. Jay Kim. The district, which includes Diamond Bar, Hacienda Heights, West Covina and parts of Whittier and Pomona, used to be a Republican stronghold.

But Democrats believe they see an opportunity this year, given the district’s increasing number of affluent Latinos and the fact that it went for Bill Clinton over Bob Dole in the last presidential election. The lone Democrat on the ballot is West Covina Councilman Ben Wong.

The three other potential target districts are registering little action in the primaries, with little or no competition for party nominations. But, given the fact that under California’s new blanket primary voters can choose among all the candidates--not just those in their own political party--these contests could provide some strong clues to the outcomes in November.

In these districts, Republicans will try to take back seats that moved into the Democratic column just two years ago. They are the 43rd District, which includes Burbank, Glendale and the Los Feliz, Silver Lake and East Hollywood parts of Los Angeles; the 44th, including La Canada Flintridge, Pasadena and Temple City; and the 56th, ranging from Downey to Cerritos to north Long Beach.