Easy win for Bono Mack

Erica Felci • The Desert Sun • June 9, 2010

Republican Rep. Mary Bono Mack handily earned a primary win Tuesday night, setting the stage for a highly anticipated November showdown with Democrat Steve Pougnet.

With 234 of 480 precincts reporting, unofficial early results from the Riverside County registrar showed Bono Mack with 73.41 percent of the vote over Hemet conservative Clayton Thibodeau’s 26.59 percent.

She now faces Pougnet and American Independent Bill Lussenheide on November’s ballot.

Neither the Palm Springs mayor nor the Menifee self-employed businessman had a primary opponent Tuesday.

In a statement, Bono Mack’s campaign manager said the apparent victory reflected the district’s “support and trust.” The campaign immediately turned its sights to November.

“In the general election, residents of this district can vote for Congresswoman Mary Bono Mack, a trusted leader with a proven record of service to our community or Steve Pougnet, the failed mayor of Palm Springs whose liberal agenda forced law enforcement layoffs and a decaying downtown,” campaign manager Ryan Mahoney said.

“The choice is clear.”

Bono Mack, first elected in 1998, has said the size of government needs to be reduced. She’s criticized the Democratic administration by saying its “solutions” have “put us into worse shape, not better.”

She’s also vowed to create jobs and rebuild the economy, telling The Desert Sun she continues to support “a free market system, lower taxes and reducing burdensome government regulations.”

Her campaign put little emphasis on Thibodeau’s primary challenge, saving most of her war chest for the anticipated general election this fall.

Thibodeau, meanwhile, has attracted the attention of the conservative tea party movement. He told The Desert Sun he moved from San Diego County to Hemet last August after activists asked him to challenge Bono Mack in this race.

The 45th Congressional District spans Riverside County and includes most of the Coachella Valley.

The race has already gained national media attention as the 45th is one of eight California congressional districts represented by a Republican, but that President Barack Obama won in 2008.