SAN DIEGO — Former Republican Rep. Brian Bilbray battled a Democrat on Tuesday to replace imprisoned ex-Congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham in a contest that drew national attention for what it may portend about the GOP's hold on Congress.
Across the state, California's congressional incumbents, some of them singed by scandals emanating from the nation's capital, sought to fend off challengers who railed against everything from their perceived support for the war in Iraq to their ties with corrupt lobbyists.
Incumbents were holding their own.
The most closely watched congressional race in California -- perhaps the nation -- took place in north San Diego County, where lobbyist and former Congressman Bilbray sought to succeed Cunningham.
Bilbray had inched ahead of his Democratic foe, Francine Busby, 55, a school board member in suburban Cardiff-by-the-Sea. Busby had hammered repeatedly on the theme of ending a "culture of corruption" that erupted under President Bush and the Republican-controlled Congress.
The fight for the 50th Congressional District was seen as an early test of whether Democrats could capitalize on Bush's plummeting approval ratings to regain a majority in at least one house of Congress.
"What is going on in California, in the 50th District, might be replicated in the rest of the country," said Stuart Rothenberg of the nonpartisan Rothenberg Political Report in Washington, D.C.
Cunningham, a Republican from Rancho Santa Fe, pleaded guilty to bribery and tax evasion and is serving an eight-year prison sentence. The investigation into Cunningham's activities continues, focusing in part on Poway-based defense contractor Brent Wilkes.
Between what the two candidates raised, and what the national parties have spent, the price tag for the race tops $10 million -- much of it spent on negative television ads.
In recent days, Bilbray received $7,000 from San Diego Chargers owner Alex Spanos and his family, and $5,000 from the New Majority Political Action Committee. Spanos and New Majority are major patrons of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Bilbray also benefited from fundraising efforts by Vice President Dick Cheney.
Bilbray said Tuesday night that he had surged in recent days, and lauded First Lady Laura Bush for her campaign help; she made automated phone calls on his behalf.
"Laura is great," Bilbray said. If he emerged victorious, Bilbray added, he would vote against amnesty for illegal immigrants and in favor of a constitutional amendment to prohibit gay marriage.
Republicans hold a wide registration lead over Democrats, 44% to 30%, and the district has reliably voted for Republican presidential candidates. In an April 11 preliminary to Tuesday's runoff, Busby, who had lost to Cunningham in 2004, finished first with 44% of the vote. Bilbray, facing a dozen Republicans, was second with 15%.
Bilbray, 55, served on the Imperial Beach City Council and the San Diego County Board of Supervisors before being elected to Congress in 1994 in a district south of the 50th; he was defeated in 2000 and became a Washington-based lobbyist. He has made illegal immigration a centerpiece of his campaign.
The race was a bit confusing. Tuesday's winner would serve the rest of Cunningham's term and face a rematch in November. The ballot included a party primary for the November general election for a two-year term.
Busby already was talking Tuesday about continuing the campaign through November. "We have already made history," she said.
California's 53 congressional district boundaries were engineered to heavily favor either Republicans or Democrats, meaning that for the most part, the primary winner will be victorious in November. But congressional scandals and Bush's unpopularity in California have spiced up races around the state.
In Northern California, veteran Republicans John T. Doolittle of the Sacramento suburb of Roseville and Richard Pombo of Tracy normally would be shoo-ins.
But their races became heated after both congressmen came under attack from ethics watchdogs because of their ties to embattled former House Majority Leader Tom Delay (R-Texas) and Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who is at the center of a widening scandal.
Doolittle, 55, who represents the 4th District in the affluent Sierra foothills east of Sacramento, was seeking his ninth term. Pombo, 45, whose 11th District in the San Joaquin Valley includes parts of the Bay Area, was after his eighth term.
Doolittle received more than $64,000 from Abramoff and his associates and more than $130,000 from Wilkes and his associates. Doolittle's wife, Julie, worked for Abramoff and runs a campaign fundraising operation that counts Doolittle as her major client. Pombo, 45, collected $37,500 from Abramoff and his associates.
