Prometheus 6

Top California Democrat Makes a Surprising Revelation: He Voted for Schwarzenegger
By DEAN E. MURPHY

Published: October 19, 2003

BERKELEY, Calif., Oct. 18 -- The California recall election is over, but the political fallout among Democrats is not.

That became clear on Saturday when one of the state's top Democrats, Attorney General Bill Lockyer, told a conference here that he not only understood why so many Californians had voted for Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Republican governor-elect, but also that he had voted for Mr. Schwarzenegger.

…Mr. Lockyer, 62, is not just any Democrat breaking ranks with the party: until the recall election, on Oct. 7, he had openly set his sights on the governor's office in 2006, when the four-year term of the outgoing Democratic governor, Gray Davis, was to end. The secretary of state's office said Mr. Lockyer's "Lockyer 2006" committee had more than $10 million as of June.

Asked after he spoke what effect his vote for Mr. Schwarzenegger might have on his standing in the Democratic Party and his own ambitions, Mr. Lockyer replied: "I don't know. I don't care. I am just doing what is right. It's a new me."

On the subject of accusations of sexual misconduct against Mr. Schwarzenegger, Mr. Lockyer said that he had no doubt that the basic accusations against Mr. Schwarzenegger were true, but that Mr. Schwarzenegger had learned from his mistakes and should be given a second chance.

That was a stark contrast to Mr. Lockyer's remarks several days before the election, when, campaigning with Governor Davis, he called for an official investigation of the accusations.

"He said, `Bill, you listen to my heart, not my party,' " Mr. Lockyer recalled. "Now how can you not love somebody that feels that way about it? I hope I am not being conned. I think the voters hope they are not being conned, because we really want and deserve people who genuinely want to see that little Diego should live safely and should go to good schools and have health care if he needs it."

Asked later what he meant about being conned, Mr. Lockyer referred to Mr. Schwarzenegger's self-promotion as a bodybuilder and actor.

"Those that have looked at the old stories know that there was a time in Arnold's life when he would try to psych out competitors and play mind games with them and so on," Mr. Lockyer said. "I don't think that is what he is doing. But there is that possibility. I hope a slim one."