1980Final results
1980 election for California's 39th District
U.S. House · California
William Dannemeyer (R) won with 76.3% of the vote, defeating Leonard L. Lahtinen (D) by 52.5 points.
William DannemeyerRepublican · winner
76.3%175,228
Leonard L. LahtinenDemocrat
23.7%54,504
229,732 votes
Source: MIT Election Data and Science LabUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:25 AM ET
The seat over time
D − R margin in this seat's races around 1980
Races before and after
Source: MIT Election Data and Science LabUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:25 AM ET
Money in this race
Each line compares the two campaigns on one scale.
Leonard L. LahtinenWilliam Dannemeyer
$16.8K
Raised by the campaign
$158.6K
$16.4K
Spent by the campaign
$126.9K
$0
Cash on hand
$0
Campaign money: FEC, through Dec 31, 1980.
Source: FEC campaign filingsUpdated Dec 31, 1980