deukmejian entered politics in california after a short period of private practice in long beach alongside malcolm m. lucas. in 1962, was elected to represent long beach in the state assembly. in 1966, he was elected as a state senator, serving from 1967 to 1979. he was a high-profile advocate for capital punishment. by 1969, he was the majority leader of the california state senate. he first ran for attorney general of california in 1970, finishing fourth in the republican primary. he won the election for attorney general in 1978 and served from 1979 to 1983. during this time, he led a high-profile campaign against cannabis in northern california. additionally, he led a veto override against governor jerry brown who had vetoed legislation to authorize the death penalty.