Feinstein stood against Republican Dick Mountjoy, who had never held a statewide elected position, but had been a state senator for several years.

Because California is a state that requires a large amount of money to wage a competitive statewide campaign, it is not unusual - as was the case for this race - for a popular incumbent to have no significant opponent.

Several prominent Republicans, such as Bill Jones, Matt Fong, and others, declined to run, and a previously announced challenger, businessman Bill Mundell, withdrew his declaration after determining he would not be a self-funded candidate (as Michael Huffington was in the 1994 election).

[1][2][3] Link to primary results Lost in primary Lost in primary On September 22, the Los Angeles Times reported that Mountjoy's official biography, as found on his campaign website, falsely asserted that he had served aboard the battleship USS Missouri during the Korean War—he had actually served aboard the heavy cruiser USS Bremerton.

A review of the ships' logs corroborated this and the website was quickly changed to reflect his service aboard the Bremerton rather than the Missouri.