It may come down to a matter of style in the race between Assemblymen Scott Wildman and Jack Scott, who are vying for the Democratic nomination to fill the state Senate seat vacated by Adam Schiff.
Do voters want Scott, the genteel former college president with a soft Texas twang, or do they want Wildman, the hyperkinetic, attention-grabbing former fourth-grade teacher?
The winner of the March 7 Democratic primary for the 21st state Senate district will probably face a tough fight against well-funded Republican Paul Zee.
The race is widely viewed as a significant contest because it is one of just five open Senate seats this year that are up for grabs by either party. Democrats currently hold the Senate majority in Sacramento with 25 seats, while the Republicans have 15.
South Pasadena's Councilman Zee is the GOP front-runner in the traditionally swing district, according to political observers. He is running against engineer Dave Wallis.
The 21st Senate district includes parts of the east San Fernando Valley, Burbank, Glendale, the Los Angeles communities of Los Feliz, Eagle Rock, Silver Lake and Griffith Park, and the city of Pasadena.
After three years, Schiff is leaving the state Senate to run against incumbent Rep. James Rogan (R-Glendale) in a hotly contested battle for the 27th congressional district seat, which includes some of the same areas.
Zee, a businessman who emigrated from Hong Kong in 1977, has raised $512,000 to date--almost as much as Scott, who has raised about $570,000, and significantly more than Wildman, who has raised about $400,000.
Bob New is running unopposed for the Libertarian Party nomination.
The 21st district was once a Republican stronghold, but a recent influx of Latino and Asian voters has contributed to a decrease in GOP registration of six percentage points since Schiff's win in 1994. Democrats now comprise 44% of the 393,882 registered voters in the district, to the Republicans' 36%.
In such a tight race, victory could hinge on factors as seemingly inconsequential as voter turnout, the candidates' ability to take advantage of the district's recent demographic changes, and the number of moderate and crossover votes up for grabs in an open presidential primary, political observers said.
The candidate who can woo the growing Latino vote could have an edge, said Alan Heslop, the director of Claremont McKenna College's Rose Institute, which analyzes local politics and demographics.
