Tony Strickland The race to represent the 19th District in the state Senate is one of the most hotly contested in the state, and with just three weeks until Election Day, many say the winner is anyone's guess.

Republican Tony Strickland and Demoncrat Hannah-Beth Jackson are looking to fill the seat that will be vacated by Tom McClintock (R-Thousand Oaks), who will term out of his post in December after 22 years.

The 19th District extends from Port Hueneme and Camarillo to Moorpark, Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks and the northwestern end of the San Fernando Valley.

Jackson, a 58-year-old Santa Barbara resident, is an attorney and former prosecutor. She served in the Assembly representing the 35th district from 1998 to 2004 and is back after battling breast cancer into remission last year.

Strickland, 38, served three terms in the Assembly representing the 37th District during the same years. The Moorpark resident's wife, Audra Strickland, now holds that seat.

On opposite sides of the fence

Hannah-Beth Jackson Given the fact that the two candidates are polar opposites on almost every issue, the race is considered by many to be the most significant Senate battle in the state.

Conservative Strickland is pro-life and supports a ban on gay marriage, while Jackson is prochoice and opposes the constitutional amendment that would prohibit same-sex marriage.

Jackson advocated for an increase in funding for education as an answer to the state's housing and employment problems. Strickland contends that education funding is mismanaged by the state and that local school boards should decide how to spend it.

Strickland wants no new taxes, while Jackson's ideas of combining cuts and taxes has earned her the name "Taxin' Jackson" from the Strickland camp.

Politicking from the past

The campaign has been a volatile one, with both sides digging up past controversies.

Last week, Jackson released a letter Strickland wrote to former state Attorney General Bill Lockyer in 2003 demanding he stop efforts to enforce the state's global warming law, claiming that human-caused climate change is a fallacy. The Jackson campaign claims global warming is one of Strickland's "biggest flip-flops."

Just days later, the Strickland camp attacked Jackson for recently claiming she was never part of a "secret meeting" about the state budget. News reports from July 2003 say a live microphone caught a conversation among 11 Democrats who discussed delaying the state budget for political gain.

The major issues

Despite a host of differences between them, Jackson and Strickland do agree on what they believe is the most pressing issue facing the 19th District: the economy.

"With things going the way they are, with the collapse of the stock market, the credit banking industry, we clearly need to figure out how we're going to regroup," Jackson said. "What we want to do is focus on creating quality jobs, creating an alternative energy and green economyWith Southern California's 300 days of sunshine, we should be creating energy that comes from the sun and wind."

Strickland agreed.

"If we don't have a strong, robust economy, which we don't have currently, we don't have the money for the things we all wanto invest in, like infrastructurehealthcare and education," he said

Strickland said an investment in renewable energy could help the state's troubled economy, and he wants to expedite the permitting process and offer tax incentives to businesses who manufacture in California.

"I think we can be the leader in the world of renewable energy, like California is for the entertainment industry," Strickland said.

The better man—or woman

Strickland said voters can be certain he's the better candidate because of decisions he's made in the past.

"I have a proven track record of working on these issues," Strickland said. "When you look at the of Chamber of Commerce endorsements . . . it's because they know I have the wherewithal to grow the local economy."

Strickland said he has a 100 percent voting record with the Chamber and criticized Jackson's scant record with independent business associations.

Jackson said her ability to reach across the aisle is critical.

"I think it's fairly clear that I have a track record of being able to bring people together and work in a bipartisan fashion," Jackson said. "I've been able to deal with issues that are directly affecting our community, like pesticide drift, the water problems in Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks. . . . I've been focused on protecting our families and not big corporations, and I think that's the stark difference between myself and my opponent."