43rd District

It is, by both candidates' admission, a Republican primary race without issues, conflict or many campaign dollars. The low-budget, low-profile contest does not bode well for the eventual nominee's prospects against Democratic Assemblyman Terry B. Friedman of Tarzana in November. Attorneys Tom Franklin of Beverly Hills and Edward Brown of Sherman Oaks are competing in the June 7 primary for the GOP nomination in the 43rd Assembly District.

I was disturbed to read the article in the Valley Section concerning the residency question in the 43rd Assembly District (March 19). As someone who ran for Assembly myself at a time when Rosemary Woodlock was a candidate, I can testify that Ms. Woodlock has a history of attacking Democrats and has a history of running for office and disappearing in between elections. Terry Friedman, on the other hand, has a 20-year history of service of his community, most recently as executive director of a legal service for poor senior citizens.

THE DISTRICT: Includes Calabasas, Encino, Sherman Oaks, Studio City, Tarzana, Topanga Canyon, Woodland Hills, Bel Air, Beverly Hills, Brentwood, West Hollywood and Westwood. Democrats outnumber Republicans by 55.4% to 34.7%. The district, one of the wealthiest in the state, traditionally sends liberal Democrats to the Legislature. THE SURVEY: Questionnaires were mailed to legislative and congressional candidates in September. Answers will be published periodically until the Nov. 4 election.

Questions were sent to candidates in September. Answers have been edited to fit the space. State Spending Q. What do you believe is the single most wasteful program in state government? Bajada: Drug enforcement. Prohibition has created more death, destruction and misery in our society than the drugs themselves would ever have done. It has given every totalitarian mentality carte blanche to assault the Bill of Rights and turn this country into a police state.

No one knows for sure which Democrat in the 43rd District Assembly race has captured the voters' hearts. But it became quite obvious this week who has a lock on their wallets. Terry Friedman, executive director of a Westside legal aid office, has soundly trounced his two Democratic opponents in fund raising during the primary campaign, according to the latest campaign finance reports.

Democratic Assemblyman Terry B. Friedman of Tarzana is running for a third term in a district that straddles the Santa Monica Mountains from the San Fernando Valley to the Westside. He faces Republican Gary Passi of Sherman Oaks, a previously unsuccessful candidate for the Assembly and other local offices in Los Angeles.

Armed with a new $58,000 contribution from a Republican Party leader, state Assemblyman James Rogan (R-Glendale) has taken a big lead in fund-raising over his Democratic foe as the pair enter the final leg of their hotly contested campaign. Rogan's $58,000 donation from state Assemblyman Jim Brulte (R-San Bernadino), the Assembly Republican leader, was the standout contribution to Rogan during the last three weeks when, altogether, the assemblyman raised $117,710 in cash.

The once-polite 43rd Assembly District race turned hostile Friday with one top Republican contender charging that another allowed an accused murderer to go free while herself being accused of voting to double her salary as a school board member.

Four years ago, Assemblyman Pat Nolan's political survival appeared to be in doubt. The Republican lawmaker's Capitol office had been raided by the FBI as part of an undercover sting operation. Two months later, in the wake of GOP election losses in 1988, disgruntled GOP lawmakers pressured Nolan from his post as the party's leader in the Assembly.