SACRAMENTO — In a boost to his struggling campaign for governor, state Treasurer Phil Angelides won the Democratic party's formal endorsement late Saturday -- and with it the promise of money and bragging rights as he seeks to reinvigorate his campaign against Controller Steve Westly.
The endorsement, announced to the roar of delegates at a party dinner, came after the two leading Democratic candidates for governor sparred over their partisan credentials while dropping hints that they would soon take their sniping to the television airwaves.
Just before 10 p.m., a beaming Angelides -- along with his wife and three daughters -- greeted cheering supporters in a convention hallway. In an impromptu press conference, he declared himself "proud and honored."
"Today, this weekend was really the start of the playoffs," Angelides said. "You know, a lot of teams make it through the regular season, but who wins is determined in the playoff season. And in the first game of that playoff season, I am very proud to have scored this victory tonight."
Asked the importance of the endorsement to his campaign, he replied: "I need everything, every day, all along the way."
As the man favored by organized labor and much of the Democratic establishment, Angelides has long expected the party's formal endorsement to give a major lift to his campaign before the June 6 primary. For Westly, whose support among Democratic leaders is comparatively thin, the goal Saturday was simply to block Angelides from reaching the 60% threshold of delegates needed to win the party's imprimatur.
In the end, it was not close, with Angelides winning 67% to Westly's 28%.
Personal wealth -- gained as an EBay executive at the height of the dot-com boom -- has enabled Westly to outspend Angelides on television ads, propelling his candidacy and lifting him in opinion polls. A Los Angeles Times poll published Saturday showed Westly leading Angelides 33%-20%, but nearly half of Democratic primary voters remained undecided.
An Angelides endorsement threatens to slow Westly's momentum at a time when a significant number of Democratic votes are still up for grabs.
In remarks earlier Saturday to the nearly 2,000 delegates, Angelides quickly went on the attack, branding his opponent "Arnold Lite" and portraying him as unworthy of the party's support in the fight against Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger -- even while avoiding mention of Westly's name.
