The District
California's 36th Congressional District

From golden beaches to the sprawling Los Angeles airport, California's 36th congressional district is filled with contrasts. Venice, Manhattan Beach and Redondo Beach stretch along the Santa Monica Bay on the district's Pacific coast, while LAX lies at the district's northern end, just south of Santa Monica. Only the northern and southern tips of this swing district are technically part of the city of Los Angeles, and in between political leanings range greatly: Venice has a liberal reputation rivaling Berkeley's, while the Palos Verdes Peninsula at the southern end of the district is strongly conservative. The peninsula is also home to older, richer residents, while Manhattan Beach is attracting a young, upwardly mobile crowd. The district is well-to-do overall, especially on the peninsula, though the district's largest city, Torrance, is more middle class.

Aerospace and high-tech drive the local economy: Hughes Electronics, Raytheon, Northrop Grumman and the Los Angeles Air Force Base are leading employers. Defense and aerospace were the important industries of the region in the 1980s and back in the 1960s. El Segundo is often called the "aerospace capital of the world." Recently, in the face of defense spending cuts, the South Bay area has been trying to diversify its economy and re-tool its industries for non-defense uses. New high-tech and multimedia businesses are leading the way.

The prominent defense industry fits with the 36th district's conservative fiscal policies, but parts of South Bay are also known for being socially liberal. The district has tended to vote Democratic in times like the mid-1970s and mid-1990s when lifestyle issues were key. By contrast, Republicans fared better in the military heydays of the 1980s. President Clinton took the district by six percentage points both in 1992 and 1996.

The district's congressional seat is currently held by freshman Republican Steven Kuykendall. Yet the number of registered Democrats and Republicans is nearly equal, meaning the 36th could swing back to Democratic challenger Jane Harman, who left the seat in 1998 after three terms to run -- unsuccessfully -- for governor. Kuykendall edged Harman in the March open primary by about one percentage point; his 1998 general election victory was by two.