DEMOCRATS SEEK CHANCE TO WIN SEAT GOAL IS TO OUST INCUMBENT REPUBLICAN ASSEMBLYMAN.

Byline: Cecilia Chan Staff Writer

Two Democrats will duke it out Tuesday for the chance to challenge Assemblyman Tony Strickland, the Thousand Oaks Republican who is running unopposed for a second, two-year term representing the 37th District.

Port Hueneme City Councilman Jon Sharkey will square off against schoolteacher Roz McGrath, who is launching a third attempt for the seat that stretches from Thousand Oaks to Oxnard. Libertarian Willard Michlin also is running.

The state Democratic Party has not endorsed either candidate but Sharkey received the majority of votes from delegates of the 37th Assembly Committee at a pre-endorsement caucus. He also was one vote shy of winning the party's endorsement at the state convention in San Jose.

``It's up to the people in Ventura County to decide who is the best choice,'' said Bob Handy, regional director for the California Democratic Party. ``Either one would make a good candidate.''

Hank Lacayo, chairman of the Ventura County Democratic Central Committee, said Sharkey has whittled away some of the support McGrath built up during her previous campaigns.

``It shows that the prior nominee did not receive full support of active Democrats in the area,'' Lacayo said. ``Jon stopped her from getting the endorsement.''

McGrath, however, countered that she wanted the Democratic Party to stay neutral and let the voters decide who will challenge Strickland. She said she has plenty of local support and financial backing from teachers and other working men and women throughout the state.

Traditional thinking is whoever takes the Democratic nomination would face an uphill battle in November - running against an incumbent in what has long been a Republican stronghold.

But Herbert Gooch, chairman of the political science department at California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks, said it would be premature to predict a GOP landslide during the general election.

``It probably largely hinges on the turnout,'' he said, adding the seat has historically been in Republican hands because the GOP can bring voters to the poll.

The 37th Assembly District had 191,439 registered voters as of mid- February - 79,830 Republicans, 74,691 Democrats, according to the Ventura County Registrar of Voters.

How much money is raised will be another factor, Gooch said.

``I suspect Sharkey is a pretty good campaigner,'' he said. ``So is Strickland.''

So far, Sharkey has raised $51,526 in monetary and in-kind donations compared with $37,816 for McGrath, according to recently filed campaign disclosure forms. He's spent $22,759, compared with $43,986 for McGrath.

To date, Strickland has received to roughly $68,000 in contributions and spent $60,000, according to his chief of staff.

Michlin said he has raised less than $1,000.

Gooch said the Democratic leadership sees the 37th District ripe for the picking because Strickland has served only one term, and he beat McGrath by only 1,200 votes in 1998. The Democrats also see Strickland as too conservative for the district, he said.

``Mr. Strickland has not distinguished himself in the past two years in office so he is not considered a strong legislator,'' Lacayo said. ``He doesn't have the deep roots into the area for him to claim that as his turf. We refuse to cede the 37th or any part of Ventura to Republicans by default. We will fight them all the way.''

Looking for solutions

Strickland said voters only need to look at his record to see he is the best person to represent the district. He also pointed to Democratic support on his Community Campaign Team.

``The best way to get elected is to represent the people in the community,'' Strickland said. ``And I think I've done that quite well.''

For business consultant Michlin, this is his fourth attempt at an Assembly seat, although his previous campaigns were in Glendale.

``I am against all the bond issues because that is just a way to raise taxes and hide it,'' he said. ``Borrowing the money is going deeper into debt and that is no solution.

``The major political parties always look for solutions,'' he said. ``And the Libertarian Party has a lot of solutions. Over time the Libertarian positions have been picked up by the political parties and that is when change occurs.''

McGrath's campaign centers on education, the same issue targeted in her 1998 run.

``We need to have programs to recruit and retain qualified teachers and to get a fair share of state resources to Ventura County,'' McGrath said.

``It's my belief that the state should set the standards but return local control to schools, parents, teachers and administrators,'' she said.

She said students heading off to college should meet high academic standards and those who enter the work force should have quality vocational programs to prepare them for good-paying jobs.

Helping taxpayers

McGrath's other target issue is lobbying for the state to return tax revenue money to counties and cities that it reallocated several years ago.

``I believe I am more moderate (than Strickland) and meet the criterion for the constituents . . . on things like education, local control, health care and protecting our environment,'' she said.

Sharkey, who is midway into his second term as a city councilman, is a newcomer to partisan politics.

He said he is the only Assembly candidate to win the backing of the authors of the SOAR initiative, which voters countywide passed in 1998 to halt urban sprawl, and the only candidate who has local government experience and has cut taxes.

During his 1994 run for Port Hueneme council, Sharkey spoke against the city's view tax, which levied a tax on homeowners who could see the ocean from their property. He was able to help repeal the tax and refund a half-million dollars to taxpayers, he said.

Grass-roots campaign

Sharkey's current platform includes returning more property tax revenue to local communities, giving cities more local control, creating a better working relationship between Sacramento and local officials and investing more money in education.

``Coming from local government I see the problem from the bottom side and not Sacramento's side,'' he said.

``Government at its best is about problem solving,'' he said. ``Quite frankly I don't care who the next (Assembly) speaker is. I am concerned with the people in Ventura County and what we need to do to make sure we maintain the quality of life we have.''

Sharkey said his campaign is entirely grass roots, with friends and family members helping spread his political message.

``There is nothing elaborate about this campaign at all,'' he said. ``The campaign is about neighbors. I am out every day knocking on doors.''

ASSEMBLY RACE

Tony Strickland, 30, Residence: Thousand Oaks.

Occupation: Assemblyman, elected November 1998.

Education: Bachelor's degree in political science from Whittier College.

Party: Republican

Roz McGrath, 52

Residence: Oxnard

Occupation: Kindergarten teacher at Mesa Union School in Somis.

Education: Bachelor's degree from Dominican College of San Rafael. Master's degree in early childhood education from San Francisco State University.

Party: Democrat

Jon Sharkey, 50

Residence: Port Hueneme

Occupation: Port Hueneme City Councilman and retired events manager.

Education: Bachelor's degree in mass communication from University of Massachusetts, Amherst; Certificate in Mediation from Ventura College of Law and additional studies in land use, planning and CEQA issues from the University of California, Los Angeles and Santa Barbara.

Party: Democrat

Willard Michlin, 53

Residence: Moorpark

Occupation: Business consultant

Education: Bachelor's degree in accounting from California State University, Los Angeles.

CAPTION(S):

4 photos, box

Photo: (1) Tony Strickland

(2) Roz McGrath

(3) Willard Michlin

(4) Jon Sharkey

Box: Assembly Race (see text)