Candidates • Danney Ball • Edie Bukewihge • Jim Dimov • Nick Jesson •
Bill Jones,
Secretary of State of California since 1995 and former assemblyman from
Fresno •
Richard Riordan, former
mayor of Los Angeles •
Bill Simon, attorney, businessman, and son of
William E. Simon Campaign Polls showed that, as a moderate, Riordan would be a more formidable challenger in the general election than his conservative opponents. Polls even showed that Riordan would defeat Davis. However, the end of the blanket primary meant that only non-partisans and registered Republicans could vote in the primary, making it more difficult for Riordan to win, given that primary voters are typically much more ideological than those who vote in the general election. During the early stages of the campaign, Riordan focused his campaign and advertisements against Davis. Other advertisements cited Riordan's call for a moratorium on
capital punishment and contrasted against Davis's strong support for it. These advertisements appear to have contributed to Riordan's ultimate defeat by the more staunchly conservative Simon. The primary campaign also included negative attacks between Riordan and
Bill Jones. Jones advertisements highlighted that Riordan had contributed money to Davis in the past and had called
Bill Clinton, "the greatest leader in the free world." Riordan's advertisements highlighted that Jones had also contributed money to Davis. By late February, Riordan's strong polling lead in the Republican had begun to slip.
Debates Results == Other primaries ==