Nominees

Dan Lungren (R)
Opposing marijuana use has been a hallmark issue for Attorney General Dan Lungren since his second term began in 1995. Lungren, first elected in 1991, took some heat from critics in 1997, when he refused to sign on to the lawsuit filed by several states against the tobacco industry. His approach to dealing with violent crime also got some ink in the last year. The attorney general's office created the nation's first statewide CD-ROM database of sex offenders and filed a friend of the court brief supporting the National Rifle Association's lawsuit over West Hollywood's attempts to ban cheap handguns. In the gubernatorial race, Lungren will benefit from the resources and support of his biggest backer, term-limited Gov. Pete Wilson.
Campaign Web site
E-mail: info@lungren98.org

Lt. Gov. Gray Davis (D)
A well-educated, Bronze Star-decorated retired Army captain, Davis is an ambitious politician. He was elected to the state Assembly from Los Angeles County in 1982, and was reelected in 1984. He was elected state controller in 1986, serving two four-year terms before he was elected lieutenant governor in 1994. Davis got his feet wet in national politics in 1992, when he mounted an unsuccessful challenge to Sen. Dianne Feinstein in the U.S. Senate primary. Echoing the results of some state polls, Davis has called education the major issue in 1998.
Campaign Web site
E-mail: gdavis@gray-davis.com

Primary Contenders

Al Checchi (D)
The word that best describes the Checchi campaign is money. The former president and CEO of Northwest Airlines is worth a reported $550 million, and Checchi estimated he would spend as much as $42 million of his own money on this race. Though he has never been a candidate or held a public office, Checchi has been a big campaign donor over the last few years. In November 1997, he ran the earliest television campaign ad in state history. In December, his wife spoke fluent Spanish in TV spots courting Latinos, an increasingly important voting block in California. Checchi supports spending more money on education and applying the death penalty more frequently. He also supports NAFTA, fast-track trade authority and school choice.
Campaign Web site
E-mail: committee@alchecchi.com

Rep. Jane Harman (D)
Harman's last-minute decision to run came after encouragement from supporters of Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who announced her decision to sit out the governor's race in January. Harman has racked up a moderate voting record in Congress. A supporter of abortion rights, the line-item veto and the balanced budget amendment, she was first elected to represent California's 36th District in 1992. She is friendly to the state's powerful defense industry and has served on the House Intelligence and National Security committees. Harman dipped into her personal fortune to finance her $1.5-million campaign in 1996.
Campaign Web site
E-mail: janeharmanforgovernor@usa.net

Dennis Peron (R)
The arch-nemesis of Attorney General Dan Lungren's fight against marijuana decided to run for office as a Republican even though he had no previous political experience. Peron is a medical marijuana activist whose San Francisco club was busted by state narcotics agents in 1996. (See a Post story on Peron's medical marijuana club.) A former marijuana dealer in San Francisco, Peron has been arrested 15 times. He faces state charges of possessing and cultivating marijuana.
Campaign Web site