Ex-baseball commissioner drops out of recall election

COSTA MESA, Calif. -- Former Major League Baseball commissioner Peter Ueberroth dropped out of the California gubernatorial recall race on Tuesday, leaving just two prominent Republicans seeking to replace Gov. Gray Davis.

The move came as the latest poll showed Ueberroth trailing badly among candidates in the Oct. 7 election.

Ueberroth, a businessman and the chief of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games, said his focus on creating jobs had caught on with voters but conceded his candidacy didn't have enough time left.

"In the four weeks where we are and where we have to get, we just can't get there," he said during a news conference at his campaign headquarters.

His exit left Republican front-runner Arnold Schwarzenegger and conservative state Sen. Tom McClintock in a contest many analysts think neither can win as long as both stay in the race.

Schwarzenegger has the support of many Republican leaders who believe he offers the party its best chance of winning. Many of his backers want McClintock to drop out so that Republicans avoid splitting their vote and handing the contest to Democratic Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante.

Far from showing any inclination to do that, McClintock dug in his heels Tuesday and issued a news release calling on Schwarzenegger to debate him at this weekend's California Republican Party convention in Los Angeles.

"Let Arnold explain why he is the better candidate for governor. Let Arnold tell the convention what besides celebrity and money does he have to offer," the release said.

Schwarzenegger's campaign said the actor would stick with his plan of engaging in only one candidate debate, on Sept. 24 in Sacramento.

The latest Field Poll, released earlier Tuesday, showed Bustamante at 30 percent, Schwarzenegger 25 percent, McClintock 13 percent and Ueberroth 5 percent.

It also showed that the competing candidacies are hurting the party's chances of taking over the governor's office. Without McClintock in the race, Schwarzenegger would lead Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante, the sole prominent Democrat, 33 percent to 31 percent, a statistical dead heat, pollsters said.

The poll showed that support for the recall appears to be losing steam. Fifty-five percent of likely voters would recall Davis, a 3-point drop in the past month but within the poll's margin of error.

The shift occurred as Davis worked to loosen up his image, holding town hall meetings and public forums and appearing more at home in parades and give-and-takes with voters.

It is not known if the image change led to the improved numbers or whether it is because of his opponents' mistakes. The negative ratings for the two front-running replacement candidates, Bustamante and Schwarzenegger, have risen.

That may give Davis an opportunity to make his case, analysts say.

"Most Democrats are not feeling too good about defeating the recall, but they have seen Gray Davis rise from the ashes before," said Harvey Englander, a Los Angeles-based Democratic consultant. "Republicans may be a little disappointed in how Schwarzenegger's campaign has gone so far ... and there are some concerns about Bustamante too."

Ueberroth was never able to join the ranks of the front-runners. He was heralded as the experienced "grownup" in the crowded field and ran on a resume that included Major League Baseball commissioner and most famously, savior of the 1984 Olympic Games.

But his campaign got off to a slow start, and never found its way out of Schwarzenegger's long shadow.

"Everything in politics is timing," said political analyst Allan Hoffenblum. "Schwarzenegger's was as dramatic as any entrance in history. After that, Ueberroth was like an asterix."

Ueberroth's departure is the latest among GOP candidates. Former gubernatorial candidate Bill Simon and U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa, who financed the recall effort, earlier said they were dropping out of the race.

Simon and Ueberroth's names will still appear on the ballot, while Issa's will not because he never filed candidacy papers.

Ueberroth's decision could be good news for Schwarzenegger if Ueberroth throws his support behind the actor, said Ken Khachigian, a former strategist for Ronald Reagan and a GOP analyst.

The actor, however, did not appear to benefit significantly from Simon's earlier departure. Simon had 8 percent support before dropping out. And with only two major Republicans left in the race, McClintock's campaign could be aided as well.

"McClintock has got much more of the spotlight now," Khachigian said. "He can go to the convention this weekend and say, look, there's two candidates in the race. Let's hear from both of them to see who's best."