46th CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT: Sanchez Repeats 1996 Victory Over Dornan
Democrat incumbent Rep. Loretta Sanchez "burst out of the gate with a solid lead" and never looked back as she bested Republican challenger Bob Dornan in a rematch of their 1996 battle. The Los Angeles Times reports that the two- year, $6.3 million campaign by both candidates was the "most expensive congressional contest in the state and the second- costliest ever" (Fiore, 11/4). Despite Sanchez's Latino heritage, "Dornan was billing himself as 'the true Latino candidate' because he opposes abortion rights, unlike Sanchez" (Curiel, San Francisco Chronicle, 11/4). After returns began to reflect Dornan's second straight loss to Sanchez, whom in 1996 he accused of benefitting from voter fraud, Dornan delivered invective-laced comments. He said "the GOP had lost 'every single state office in California to liberal Democrats running abortion ads'" (AP/Las Vegas Sun, 11/4). With 100% of precincts reporting, Sanchez won by a margin of 56% to 39% (cbsnews.com). Click here for previous coverage of this race.
This is part of the California Healthline Daily Edition, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations. Sign up for an email subscription.