Full Biography for Dan Lungren

Candidate for
Governor

DANIEL E. LUNGREN BIOGRAPHY

A Californian through and through - nothing better describes Dan Lungren. Through 17 years of public service from the halls of the U.S. Congress to the post of state Attorney General, Dan Lungren's spirit of optimism, hope and challenge has touched millions of people.

A respected attorney whose courtroom trial skills are traced to his education at the University of Notre Dame and Georgetown Law Center, Dan Lungren was drawn to public service.

As a young, articulate Republican representing his hometown of Long Beach in the U.S. House of Representatives, from 1979 - 1989, Dan Lungren earned a reputation as an intelligent lawmaker - tough in debate, yet remarkably able to build consensus by bridging partisan divisions.

His skill as an attorney and legislator led to the enactment of some of the most important laws in the 1980's, including Ronald Reagan's extensive Crime Control Act in 1984 and the historic 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act.

Yet a decade of accomplishment in the nation's Capitol left Dan Lungren longing to return with his wife, Bobbi, and their three children to California.

Following his appointment in 1988 as State Treasurer by Governor George Deukmejian and the one-vote rejection by the partisan state Senate, Dan Lungren set out, undeterred, to win election as California Attorney General - a natural fit for this dedicated and experienced crime fighter.

Embarking in 1991 on his first term in statewide office, Dan Lungren set new priorities for the Department of Justice. Capital punishment would be restored. Law enforcement would be strengthened. Crime victims would be heard, and criminals punished. Enforcement of laws affecting the state's job health would be balanced and fair.

Lungren's bold challenge of the status quo in so many areas did not go unnoticed. In 1994, he was re-elected Attorney General in a landslide, topping his opponent by 1.2 million votes.

In recognition of his performance, the nation's Attorneys General honored Dan Lungren with their highest award, the Wyman Award, in 1996.

With dozens of tough new laws to his credit and the lowest crime rate in California in 30 years, Dan Lungren now turns his unflagging energy and enthusiasm for California to a new goal: the Office of Governor. His common-sense agenda starts with top-to-bottom reform of the state's faltering public education system, tough and smart crime policies and a booming economy made possible by more efficient and less intrusive government.

As one of 10 "Rising Republicans" in the country, according to a 1996 Time Magazine analysis, Dan Lungren - the man Alameda County Sheriff Charles Plummer calls "the best Attorney General California's ever had" - is ready to lead the Golden State into the next century.