Politics

Sanchez And Dornan $lug It Out

By CBSNews.com staff CBSNews.com staff

October 29, 1998 / 2:53 PM EST / CBS

Democratic incumbent Loretta Sanchez and her GOP challenger, Bob Dornan, are slugging it out in the nation's most expensive House race. The candidates have raised a combined total of $6.4 million in their bid to represent California's 46th District.

Sanchez, who has raised $3 million, has amassed more money than any other House incumbent but Speaker Newt Gingrich and Minority Leader Richard A. Gephardt. No freshman legislator has ever raised near that amount.

Dornan has topped $3.4 million. That's more than any House challenger and $1.4 million more than Dornan has raised in any of his previous campaigns.

But there's much less than meets the eye in Dornan's total. His direct mail fund-raising costs were $2.3 million. In mid-October, he had only about $200,000 on hand. Sanchez, by contrast, had more than $900,000, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Analysts say the big money is pouring in from people motivated by ideology. This race brings into sharp focus the split between conservatives and liberals on such national issues as abortion, education reform, defense spending and the role of organized labor.

"Just like metal filings are attracted to a magnet, ideological money from all over the country is attracted to this race," said Larry Makinson, executive director of the Center for Responsive Politics, a Washington nonprofit research group.

While most Republicans enjoy support from business interests, it's Sanchez who has backing from business in this race. Most of Dornan's money comes from households around the nation in increments of $50 to $100.

"There is nothing typical about this race," said Dwight Morris of the Virginia-based Campaign Study Group, which analyzed fund-raising data for the Times.

Dornan, 65, is a conservative firebrand who held the seat for nine terms until Sanchez, 38, defeated him by 987 votes in 1996.

The Orange Country district has been conservative terrain in the past, but an influx of Hispanic voters has changed the demographics.

Dornan, who believes character is the No. 1 issue in the race, has hammered away at his opponent's support for abortion rights. He even put a picture of the Virgin of Guadalupe on the cover of an anti-abortion mailer in an effort to appeal to the district's Catholic Latino voters.

"The Clinton administration will drag her down like a lead zeppelin," predicts Dornan's campaign manager.

Sanchez has stuck to bread-and-butter Democratic issues like Social Security and health care. She held a 16-point lead over Dornan in the most recent poll, but with more than one-third of the voters still undecided, the seat is still up for grabs.

Most of Dornan's money has come froretirees through a national direct mail campaign. About 68 percent of his funds came from outside the state and $2.5 million, or 75 percent, was from donors who gave less that $200 each.

Dornan, who is known as "B-1 Bob" for his strong support for the B-1 bomber, also brought in money from political action committees.

These included such conservative ideological groups as Phyllis Schlafly's Eagle Forum, the Republican National Coalition for Life and the Campaign for Working Families.

"Bob Dornan has a proven pro-family, pro-life voting record," said Sheila Maloney, executive director of the Eagle Forum, which has donated $10,000 since January 1997 --more than any other group or person.

Sanchez's campaign coffers rely heavily on support from labor and women's groups. Gay rights groups also want to keep Dornan from returning to office.

Like Dornan, Sanchez also raised money from individual donors around the country, though nearly three-quarters of her total came from Californians.

But instead of using direct mail, she launched an intense telemarketing campaign targeted at women and Hispanics. About $2.4 million, or 49 percent, of her contributions were from individuals, unusual for an incumbent member of Congress.