2001 California's 32nd congressional district special election

A special election was held on June 5, 2001, to elect a member of the United States House of Representatives from California's 32nd congressional district to replace Julian Dixon, who died on December 8, 2000, of a heart attack.

2001 California's 32nd congressional district special election

June 5, 2001 (2001-06-05)
California's 32nd congressional district
Turnout	15.27%
Nominee Diane Watson Noel Hentschel Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 72,995 19,403 Percentage 74.8% 19.9%
U.S. Representative before election Julian Dixon Democratic Elected U.S. Representative Diane Watson Democratic

A special open primary election was held on June 1, 2001, of which Democratic Ambassador Diane Watson won nearly a third of the vote in a field of sixteen candidates. She handily defeated her main challenger, Republican Noel Hentschel, in the general election. Watson was redistricted to 33rd district for the 2002 election, in which she was re-elected.

Background

Located mainly in the Culver City area of Los Angeles County, the 32nd district was considered a Democratic stronghold. It voted strongly Democratic in the past few presidential elections, giving Al Gore a lead of 70 percentage points over George W. Bush in the 2000 election.

Julian Dixon was first elected in the 1978 election to represent the 28th district. He never faced serious competition during his tenure, and would serve eleven terms. Before starting his twelfth term, of which he was elected to with 83.5% of the vote, he died in Los Angeles of a heart attack.

Candidates

Democratic Party

• Kirsten W. Albrecht
• Jules Bagneris, candidate for Los Angeles City Council in 1989
• Tad Daley, author and anti-war activist
• Frank Evans III
• Nate Holden, Los Angeles City Council member (1987–2002) and state senator (1974–1978)
• Wanda James
• Philip A. Lowe
• Kevin Murray, state senator (1999–2005) and state assemblyman (1994–1998)
• Blair H. Taylor
• Leo Terrell, civil rights attorney and political commentator
• Diane Watson, U.S. Ambassador to Micronesia (1999–2000) and state senator (1978–1990, 1994–1998)

Republican Party

• Mike Cyrus
• Noel Hentschel, philanthropist and candidate for lieutenant governor in 1998
• Mike Schaefer, San Diego City Council member (1965–1971) and financial analyst

Green Party

• Donna J. Warren, human rights activist

Reform Party

• Ezola Foster, educator and candidate for U.S. vice president in 2000

Endorsements

Tad Daley (D)

• John B. Anderson, U.S. Representative for IL-16 (1961–1981) and independent candidate for U.S. president in 1980
• Martin Sheen, actor

Noel Hentschel (R)

• Burt Bacharach, composer and songwriter

Results

Primary

Special election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Diane Watson	29,524	32.87
	Democratic	Kevin Murray	23,697	26.38
	Democratic	Nate Holden	15,005	16.70
	Republican	Noel Hentschel	4,806	5.35
	Democratic	Leo Terrell	4,387	4.88
	Democratic	Philip A. Lowe	2,742	3.05
	Republican	Mike Schaefer	2,315	2.58
	Democratic	Tad Daley	1,407	1.57
	Green	Donna J. Warren	1,167	1.30
	Democratic	Jules Bagneris	1,145	1.28
	Republican	Mike Cyrus	982	1.09
	Democratic	Kirsten W. Albrecht	768	0.86
	Democratic	Wanda James	572	0.64
	Democratic	Blair H. Taylor	558	0.62
	Reform	Ezola Foster	514	0.57
	Democratic	Frank Evans III	244	0.27
Total votes			89,833	100.00
Turnout				3.51

General

Special election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Diane Watson	72,995	74.81
	Republican	Noel Hentschel	19,403	19.89
	Green	Donna J. Warren	3,661	3.75
	Reform	Ezola Foster	1,512	1.55
Majority			53,592	54.93
Total votes			97,571	100.00
Turnout				15.27
	Democratic hold

See also

• List of special elections to the United States House of Representatives