LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A California congressional election featuring the dark-horse candidacy of border-control activist Jim Gilchrist has thrust the issue of illegal immigration to the political forefront.

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Gilchrist became a lightning rod in the immigration debate by founding the local Minutemen volunteer border patrol and is a long-shot candidate in Tuesday's special election in one of California's most solidly Republican districts.

But political analysts say his presence on the ballot forced Republican Party favorite John Campbell and others to take a hard line on immigration -- or risk alienating voters frustrated over the issue.

Gilchrist, running as an American Independent Party candidate, drew 14 percent of the vote in the October 5 primary.

"Some of Gilchrist's vote was a protest vote. Voters sent a message that immigration was an important issue for them and they anticipate that the Republican Party will pay attention to it in the future," said Luis DeSipio, a political science professor at University of California, Irvine.

Gilchrist campaigned on a platform that holds the nation's porous border with Mexico and the influx of illegal immigrants responsible for California's crowded schools and bankrupt hospitals and for threatening national security.

On a national level, President George W. Bush has had to balance the demands of his conservative base for tougher immigration policies and the Republican Party's desire to court the fast-growing Hispanic vote.

He sparked divisions in his own party by proposing a "guest worker" plan that could allow illegal workers to remain in the United States. In his radio address on Saturday, Bush promoted his plan to toughen border security.

VOTERS BURNED OUT

Interest in the California contest has faded since the primary, with voters burned out by the state's divisive special election in November and distracted by the Thanksgiving holiday.

Although there have been few public opinion polls, Campbell -- a rich, churchgoing entrepreneur and former California Republican state senator -- is expected to win on Tuesday.

The victor will fill the seat vacated by Christopher Cox, who was appointed chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

"Gilchrist raised awareness of illegal immigration and made it the front-burner issue. But it is not everyone's No. 1 issue, and you can't get 51 percent of the vote on one issue," said Matt Cunningham, an unaffiliated California political strategist.

"Campbell is way, way ahead. He will win overwhelmingly," said Cunningham, saying he expected very low voter turnout.

An estimated 11 million illegal immigrants live and work in the United States and more than 1 million migrants every year try to slip across rivers and deserts on the U.S.-Mexico border in search of mostly low-skilled jobs.

The Minuteman volunteers, who take their name from a militia in the American Revolution, first turned up in the Arizona desert in April to patrol for illegals crossing the border from Mexico. At least two competing groups started similar patrols in San Diego in July.

Bush last week tried to balance differences within the Republican Party by calling for stronger border controls with Mexico, while vowing the United States would remain a "welcoming society."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20051203/us_nm/california_dc