The kidnaping death of 12-year-old Polly Klaas of Petaluma has escalated violent crime to a frenzied pitch as a political issue in California, just as candidates for governor in 1994 are mapping out their plans for voter attention and support.

The emotional issue of violence and crime may breathe life into the reelection prospects of Republican Gov. Pete Wilson while posing a particular hazard for prospective Democratic challenger Kathleen Brown, political experts said last week.

Election issues come and go--often seemingly by whim as they flash across the attention span of the voting public. And nearly 11 months remain before Californians choose a governor--a huge amount of time in the evolution of a political campaign.

But the question of crime and the safety of California's citizens is not likely to subside during 1994, said Mervin Field, veteran California political observer and founder of the Field Poll.

"It's like the tides in a storm," Field said. "Each succeeding tide is heavier."

Voter concerns about crime are likely to be a factor in the primary race between the two major prospective Democratic challengers to Wilson: state Treasurer Brown and state Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi.

As Wilson's popularity in the polls plummeted to historic lows over the past year, along with the depressed California economy, the governor's prospects for reelection appeared to be grim.

But Wilson began hitting the crime issue hard this summer, well before Polly's kidnaping.

Through the summer and fall, Wilson made frequent appearances in the Los Angeles area, standing grim-faced before television cameras to denounce "random, senseless butchery . . . cowardly thugs . . . and murdering cowards."

In his statewide campaigns for the U.S. Senate and governor, Wilson has repeatedly had success with the issue of crime and has developed close rapport with crime victims groups.

Thus, no one was surprised to see an emotional Wilson at the memorial service for Polly on Thursday night vowing that "we must turn our grief to action and see that this never happens again. That must be our tribute to Polly."

Nor was there surprise when Wilson endorsed a proposed ballot initiative that would send a convict to prison for life upon conviction on a third felony, a measure referred to as "three strikes and you're out." Or when he announced that he will convene a summit conference on crime to be held in Los Angeles in January.