S.D. Election Seen as Test of Abortion Issue

SAN DIEGO —  In a prelude to the 1990 elections, pro-choice and anti-abortion forces are testing their political muscle in the current 76th Assembly District campaign--a race that could offer evidence of the political fallout from the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent abortion ruling.

With the Aug. 8 election being among the first state legislative contests in the country since the Supreme Court gave the states new powers to regulate abortions, pro-choice groups hope to capture the seat and use the victory to send a message to politicians across the state and nation.

“If we can win in this district, we can win anywhere,” said Robin Schneider, director of the California Abortion Rights Action League’s Southern California chapter, which has endorsed Bonita nurse Tricia Hunter and is working actively on her behalf in the race to elect a successor to the late Bill Bradley (R-Escondido).

Though abortion opponents have resisted framing the contest as a referendum on the volatile issue, they nevertheless have jumped into the fray. Two prominent anti-abortion organizations are backing candidates, and one of the groups plans to launch an independent effort in support of its candidate, Poway businessman Dick Lyles.

Split in GOP

Complicating matters is a split among Assembly Republicans about whether to support Lyles or another major candidate, Poway City Councilwoman Linda Brannon, in the primary. One factor in the election likely will be the unusual rules governing special election primaries, which allow Democrats, who are outnumbered 54% to 33% in the district, to vote for a Republican if they desire.

That crossover vote could be the key to the election’s outcome. The abortion-rights league, and probably the National Organization for Women, will be urging their members--Democrats and Republicans--to vote for Hunter, a Republican who supports the right of women to obtain abortions and also backs public funding of abortions for the poor.

Linda Joplin, statewide coordinator for California NOW, said the group is monitoring every legislative race in the wake of the Supreme Court’s Webster decision. Though the July 3 court ruling did not change California law on abortion, many activists believe it could open the door to increased involvement by the Legislature, which is narrowly divided on the issue.

Little Chance Seen

Because the 76th Assembly district, which stretches from the South Bay to northeastern San Diego County into southern Riverside County, is overwhelmingly Republican, the two Democrats on the ballot are thought to have little chance of winning. As a result, the pro-choice groups, which usually side with Democrats, are supporting Republican Hunter.

“The opportunity to elect a pro-choice Republican to the Legislature is an opportunity that doesn’t come along very often,” Joplin said. She said her group probably will endorse Hunter, contribute to her campaign and conduct an independent mailing to its members in the district.

Schneider, of the Abortion Rights Action League, said her organization hopes to capitalize on the renewed feminist fervor generated by the court decision. The group, which in the past has limited its involvement to making endorsements and donating to campaigns, has already launched a telephone polling effort to identify pro-choice voters and get them to the polls for Hunter on Election Day, she added.

“This is something completely different and new for us,” Schneider said. “It is only possible because there is a very heightened concern about this issue.”

Backed by Nurses

Hunter, who was appointed by Gov. George Deukmejian to two terms on the state Board of Nursing, also enjoys the backing of the pro-choice California Nurses Assn., which has spent about $60,000 on her behalf to date. Hunter is using the same political consulting firm that in 1986 helped elect Assemblyman Charles W. Quackenbush of Saratoga. One of the few pro-choice Republicans in the Assembly, Quackenbush triumphed despite opposition in the GOP primary from a conservative backed by Republican leaders.

Schneider concedes that the pro-choice groups have little to lose in this contest, because the district had been represented since 1982 by Bradley, who was solidly anti-abortion. If Hunter wins, the abortion rights group will portray the result as a precedent-setting victory for its side. If Hunter loses, Schneider said, pro-choice strength in the Assembly will be unchanged and the group will chalk up its effort as a “learning experience.”

“This is an experiment for us, something we’ve never done before,” she said. “It is a dry run for the 1990 elections.”

Confrontation Downplayed

Anti-abortion groups, meanwhile, are downplaying the confrontation. With the possibility that Hunter might win the race with some Democratic votes and a portion of a badly split Republican electorate, they do not want the contest to be seen as an up-or-down vote on abortion.

“They (pro-choice groups) are going in with flags waving,” said Brian Johnston, director of the National Right to Life Committee’s California operation. “We’re not taking that kind of position. Every race is important to us.”

Johnston’s group has endorsed Lyles, who opposes abortion and believes that life begins at conception. Johnston said the organization has contributed to Lyles’ campaign and also plans some kind of independent expenditure, possibly a mailing, on his behalf.

Lyles, considered the front-runner, also enjoys the backing of Assembly Republican Leader Ross Johnson of La Habra, who last week sent a letter to major GOP contributors supporting Lyles and hinting, without naming her, that Hunter might not be a loyal Republican.

At Odds With Johnson

Brannon, meanwhile, has been endorsed by about half-a-dozen Assembly Republicans who long have been at odds with Johnson and his closest allies in the GOP caucus. Those lawmakers--with whom Bradley was aligned--are helping Brannon raise the campaign contributions that are crucial in a short special election campaign.

Hoping to carve out a middle ground on the abortion issue, Brannon describes herself as a “pro-responsibility” candidate who is positioned ideologically between Hunter’s pro-choice and Lyles’ anti-abortion stances.

While personally opposed to abortion, Brannon says she would support abortions under more limited circumstances than they are now available. Opposed to public funding for abortions, she proposes expanding adoption programs and perhaps creating “college-type campuses for pregnant women” where job-training skills would be taught during pregnancy.

With Hunter receiving support that typically goes to Democrats, supporters of Lyles and Brannon say they fear the anti-abortion resources will be divided, not only between themselves, but also among three other GOP candidates--among them, Bill Hoover, a San Diego Police lieutenant who is backed by members of Operation Rescue, the militant anti-abortion group that has blocked the doors of abortion clinics throughout the country.

Fundamentalist Concerned

The Rev. Billy Falling, head of the Escondido-based Christian Voters League, a fundamentalist political-religious group, said he is concerned that the Right to Life Committee’s endorsement of Lyles “brings confusion to the pro-life camp and threatens to divide the pro-life vote.”

Falling has endorsed Hoover, whom he describes as an “uncompromising pro-life candidate.” Indicative of the split within the anti-abortion forces, however, other Operation Rescue members are backing Lyles, whom they consider the more viable candidate.

Two other Republicans in the race--state Senate aide Dennis Koolhaas and retired businessman Ray Foster--also oppose abortion. Koolhaas, who said he is dismayed that abortion may become “the single issue in this campaign,” often explains his position by reminding campaign audiences that he was adopted.

Both Democrats in the race--Jeannine Correia, an instructor for the retarded, and mental health worker Stephen Thorne--support the pro-choice position, but neither has yet attracted the endorsements or resources to mount an aggressive campaign. Even so, because of the primary’s unorthodox structure, one of them could qualify for the runoff despite finishing behind several Republicans.

20% Turnout Expected

With voter turnout in next week’s primary expected to be only about 20%, a candidate could win the race by capturing more than 50% of vote, which could amount to about only 20,000 ballots. The prospect of an outright victory in the primary, however, is unlikely because of the large field of candidates. More plausible would be a scenario under which no candidate wins in the primary and the race moves to an Oct. 3 runoff between the top Democrat and the top Republican.

The election, which will be held the same day as two legislative contests in Missouri, has already attracted national attention because of the abortion fight. A network television crew has taped a segment on the campaign that is scheduled to air this week, and national activists on both sides will be eyeing the outcome anxiously.

Pointing to a “groundswell of interest” in the abortion issue at recent forums and other campaign events, Hunter said: “It’s become much more of an issue than it was at the beginning. Clearly, it’s going to be an important measure of who wins this race.”

Prediction Dismissed

Brannon consultant Herb Williams, however, dismisses that prediction as wishful thinking on Hunter’s part linked to her strategy of trying to attract Democratic votes in the primary.

“The only person trying to make abortion a central issue is Tricia Hunter,” Williams said. “It would not be a pivotal issue if (pro-choice groups) had not decided to target the race because they had a died-in-the-wool pro-choice Republican on the ballot.”

And Johnston, of the right-to-life committee, is already promising to rub the result in the noses of the pro-choice groups if Hunter does not win.

“They say that this is a hallmark race, that it is going to demonstrate how the unlimited abortion position is somehow a positive position to have in electoral politics,” Johnston said. “Let’s make sure they’re saying the same thing when they lose. The sword does have to cut both ways.”