Voters stick with Denham, reject recall attempt

Voters pummeled the recall against state Sen. Jeff Denham on Tuesday, leaving the Atwater Republican to serve out the rest of his second term.

About 70 percent of the voters in District 12 said they want Denham to remain in office, according to the secretary of state's preliminary election results.

"It's been very humbling to see so much support and so much new support," Denham said as the landslide results came in. "We've won over people who are frustrated with this process. They wanted to send a message that this won't be tolerated in the valley."

In Stanislaus County, almost 78 percent of eligible voters opposed the recall. In Merced County, the margin was larger -- 84 percent. Denham's district also sprawls over Pacheco Pass to as far west as Salinas and includes parts of six counties.

The results reaffirm Denham's support among a vast spectrum of voters, a majority registered with the Democratic Party. He bills himself as a fiscal conservative who supports education.

Supporters gathered at a downtown Modesto restaurant Tuesday night to cheer Denham as he crushed the recall.

"This was politics at its worst," he said. "It doesn't matter if you're a Republican or a Democrat, this was the wrong way to play politics."

Newspaper editorials across the district as well as city, county and business leaders denounced the recall effort that had little local support.

Stanislaus County Sheriff Adam Christianson was one of the Denham supporters who was at the victory party.

"Jeff Denham has always done a good job," Christianson said. "Jeff stood up and did what's right. I think this recall effort was a waste of money and a waste of time."

Denham was elected by a landslide to a second Senate term in 2006 and the recall's success seemed unlikely from the beginning. He's now considering a 2010 run for lieutenant governor, and said he'll make a decision next year.

It started with budget denial

Former state Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata, D-Oakland, spearheaded the recall in August because Denham refused to be the sole vote needed to pass California's budget.

It began quietly with "Dump Denham!" signs sprouting up across his district, though no one would take responsibility. By the spring, the gloves came off and the recall campaign was airing commercials accusing Denham of skipping out on work because he attended a fund- raising event in Las Vegas and also met there with Arizona Sen. John McCain.

Denham said the campaign money was appropriately spent and believed the negative campaign would fail.

"The voters saw right through their false attacks," he noted.

Despite pressure from schools and even Gov. Schwarzenegger, Denham said he stood firm against the budget because he believed it needed to be reduced because revenues wouldn't match the proposed spending. With the state now dealing with a $17.2 billion shortfall, he was proved correct.

Still, the recall went on, costing Denham and the Democratic Party trying to oust him millions. If Denham were removed, the state Senate's Democrats would have been one vote closer to a supermajority, allowing them to raise taxes and pass the budget without the support of Republicans.

Perata abandoned the campaign in early May because he said he believed it could be a distraction for lawmakers as they began to tackle the budget shortfall. However, it was too late to take it off the ballot, and Denham kept campaigning.

Monterey County Supervisor Simon Salinas was the only candidate who filed paperwork to replace Denham. Salinas said he may consider a Senate run when Denham is forced out by term limits in two years.

Bee staff writer Rosalio Ahumada contributed to this report.

This story was originally published June 4, 2008 at 4:06 AM with the headline "Voters stick with Denham, reject recall attempt."