1980Flipped from RepublicanFinal resultsIncumbent defeated
1980 election for California Assembly District 39
California State Assembly · California
Richard Katz (D) won with 49.8% of the vote, defeating J. Robert Hayes (R) by 4.7 points, a seat Republicans won last time.
Richard KatzDemocrat · winner
49.8%38,081
J. Robert HayesRepublican · incumbent
45.1%34,500
Lily Doria WoodsIndependent
2.8%2,143
Bob BinsleyLibertarian
2.3%1,760
76,484 votes
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET
The seat over time
D − R margin in this seat's races around 1980
Races before and after
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET
The candidates
Richard Katz (D)J. Robert Hayes (R)
Also on the ballot: Lily Doria Woods (Independent), 2.8%; Bob Binsley (Libertarian), 2.3%