George Deukmejian, ex-governor, dies

SACRAMENTO — Twoterm California governor George Deukmejian, whose anti-spending credo earned him the nickname “The Iron Duke,” died Tuesday of natural causes, a former chief of staff said. He was 89.

The Republican spent three decades in California politics as an assemblyman, senator, state attorney general and governor.

He was elected as the state’s 35th governor in 1982 when a massive absentee voting campaign edged him just ahead of Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley.

As governor from 1983 to 1991, Deukmejian ran a law-and-order administration, expanding the state prison system, bringing the left-leaning California Supreme Court to the center and supporting tough, anticrime legislation.

Steve Merksamer, who worked with Deukmejian in the attorney general’s office and later as his gubernatorial chief of staff, described the former governor as “decent, humble and gracious” and someone who “demanded honesty and integrity.”

Deukmejian’s greatest moment, he said, was his advocacy for California to divest from South Africa during apartheid, a move that was controversial at the time.

“This was an act of enormous political courage,” Merksamer said.

Despite a few notable exceptions, Deukmejian made his opposition to new taxes and increased government spending a focus of his political career. His favorite phrase was “commonsense,” which in many cases translated into “cut” or “stop.”