Independent commentator Arianna Huffington said Monday she is strongly considering leaving the recall race, signaling a growing fear among the political left that Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger stands a good chance of becoming California's next governor.

Arianna Huffington is worried the GOP will bring "disastrous economic policies."

Huffington, appearing at a campaign event in San Francisco, said she would decide as soon as today whether to urge her supporters to oppose the recall and possibly back Democratic Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante -- reflecting the view that in a close race, votes by progressives for Huffington and Green Party candidate Peter Camejo could help elect Schwarzenegger.

"I'm talking to a lot of supporters and people who are part of the campaign.

I'm going to make a decision later this week," she told reporters.

"What is very important . . . is to make sure that the state does not go to a Republican who is going to bring to the state the same disastrous economic policies we have in Washington," she said. "That is a very important consideration."

Huffington's potential exit highlights the changing dynamics of the race: Two weeks ago Bustamante, the only major Democrat on the recall replacement ballot, was seen as the top contender, and Huffington and Camejo were taking potshots at him. Schwarzenegger was struggling to unify GOP support amid a strong challenge by state Sen. Tom McClintock.

Since then, Schwarzenegger has racked up endorsements by Republican leaders and is consolidating the GOP vote. Now all the major replacement candidates are targeting the actor-turned-candidate. Even Gov. Gray Davis' advisers are predicting Schwarzenegger will win the Oct. 7 recall replacement race.

POLL QUESTIONED

A recent CNN/USA Today poll showed strong support for recalling Davis and a widening lead for Schwarzenegger. However, the poll's results have been hotly contested.

The survey, conducted by Gallup and released Sunday, showed 63 percent of "probable" voters support the recall to 35 percent opposed. The survey also found Schwarzenegger leading with 40 percent, followed by Bustamante at 25 percent, McClintock at 18 percent, Camejo with 5 percent and Huffington with just 2 percent.

But the poll's results are based on the assumption that Republicans will comprise 47 percent of voters on Oct. 7 -- even though GOP registration in California is only 35 percent.

More polls are expected to be released this week, including the Field Poll and one by the Los Angeles Times.

Art Torres, chairman of the California Democratic Party, blasted the polls results as "outrageous," saying there's little chance Republicans will make up half of voters on election day.

"It's the most irresponsible thing a pollster has ever done in the height of a campaign," Torres said. "If their intent was to depress Democrats, it may very well do that."

When the poll tabulated the responses of "registered" voters, the margin fell to 55 percent in favor of the recall and 41 percent opposed -- essentially what other recent polls have shown.

"It's still not good news for Davis," said pollster Mark Baldassare of the Public Policy Institute of California. "Whatever progress Davis has made since the recall went into effect in early August, it hasn't been enough to overcome the fact that a large proportion of voters who are likely to show up still don't like the job he's doing in office. It's becoming a very difficult thing to overcome."

Davis won re-election last November with just 47 percent of the vote, but to avoid being recalled the governor needs to surpass the 50 percent mark.

CAMEJO IN TO THE END

Camejo, in an interview Monday, said he's just as concerned as Huffington about Schwarzenegger becoming governor. But he said he has no intention of leaving the race or urging Green Party voters to vote no on the recall.

"If some of my supporters decide to vote for Cruz, as a way to stop Arnold Schwarzenegger, I'm not angry at them," Camejo said.

But he added, "I will stay in until the end. I want to use this last week to convince the base of the Democratic Party of how they have suffered because of the dysfunctional nature of the Democratic Party and its subservience to the same interests that fund the Republican Party."

Camejo said Huffington had called him Monday to discuss her decision, and he's urging her to stay in the race.

"If she stays in, she will be able to be far more outspoken about issues that she feels strongly about, such as preventing Arnold Schwarzenegger from being elected," he said.

TOUGH DECISION

Huffington's decision to possibly exit the race is another sign of Schwarzenegger's strength. The TV commentator has spent weeks bashing Bustamante for taking money from Indian gaming tribes -- calling it "legalized bribery" -- but in last week's debate, she mostly attacked Schwarzenegger.

Even some of her staunchest supporters, including donors and campaign staffers, are telling her she should consider quitting.

"People are torn," said Van Jones, Huffington's statewide grassroots director and a longtime San Francisco activist. "Frankly, we're in a situation where we feel we have no good choices.

"We don't want to do anything that would help Arnold Schwarzenegger pull off his right-wing coup. At the same time we don't want to compromise on our principles with regard to getting big money out of the system."

Kevin Danaher, a co-founder of Global Exchange and friend of Huffington, wants Huffington to discuss a deal to endorse Bustamante in return for his agreeing to take up some of her ideas if he becomes governor.

DEAL WITH BUSTAMANTE

"You can't make some quid pro quo where you say, 'I'll make you secretary of whatever,' " Danaher said. "But you can say: 'You know what my issues are, you know what my stand is. Maybe we can have some kind of understanding here?' "

In fact, Bustamante appeared to curry Huffington's support during an Asian- Pacific American forum Sunday in Sacramento, during which he pledged his support for her proposed initiative to publicly finance campaigns.

But Bustamante adviser Richie Ross said there were "no conversations" about a deal to secure Huffington's endorsement.

Huffington, at Monday's event in San Francisco, said Bustamante's donations from tribes and Schwarzenegger's corporate contributions are still "exhibit A" for a broken campaign financing system. But she praised Bustamante for endorsing her public financing proposal.

"I believe in conversions -- I had one myself," said Huffington, who morphed from a Newt Gingrich Republican into a progressive.

Chronicle political writer Carla Marinucci contributed to this report.

©2003 San Francisco Chronicle

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