Political commentator Arianna Huffington said she's not only philosophically opposed to the death penalty, she would use the bully pulpit of the Governor's Office to rally public opinion against it.

Financial adviser Peter Camejo said he wasn't just opposed to the death penalty -- he also opposes the state's "three-strikes" law to put criminals with multiple felonies behind bars for life.

State Sen. Tom McClintock, noting that he's the author of the state's lethal injection law, came down squarely on the side of capital punishment.

Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante and former baseball commissioner Peter Ueberroth said they support the death penalty, too. But Ueberroth added that voters would rather hear about "how to protect their jobs and their businesses."

The answer to that question was typical of the way things went in California's first debate for its first gubernatorial recall.

In a two-hour debate televised live statewide Wednesday, there was a candidate on stage for people of nearly every political persuasion, even though actor and Republican candidate Arnold Schwarzenegger didn't show up.

Independent observers generally concluded it was an issue-rich discussion of problems the governor must confront, with a minimum of scripted political attacks.

"If you stuck it out, I think you have a very clear ideological distinction between the final five," said Barbara O'Connor, director of the Institute for the Study of Politics and Media at California State University, Sacramento. "The only thing they agreed on was (allowing medicinal use of) marijuana and, of course, it is California."

O'Connor said it was one of the most substantive forums she'd seen in more than 30 years of coaching and analyzing debates.

"You knew what they stood for, and you could make a choice aligning with your own beliefs," she said. "They carved out their constituencies well. The real question is what constituency is left, and where does Arnold fit in?"

Perhaps the clearest distinction between the candidates was on the relationship between business and government in California.

Democratic candidate Bustamante, for example, said businesses have an obligation to provide "basic services" to their workers. "If they don't do it, we have to make sure we impose that on those employers," he said.

Ueberroth, a Republican, declared "no corporation is perfect" but said government can't provide education and health care services if it requires so much of employers that it drives jobs out of the state.

Taking advantage of Schwarzenegger's absence, Republican candidate McClintock made a clear appeal to GOP conservatives, saying he is against raising taxes under any circumstances.

Huffington then wondered why he hasn't taken on the "orgy of fiscal irresponsibility going on in Washington" under President Bush. She said she would touch "the electrified rail of Proposition 13" to address her view that property-tax collections are too low, finding some way to tie tax levies to homeowners' income.

Camejo argued that both major parties have failed to strike the right balance, saying that unless corporate taxes are raised, "you can't balance the budget."

In part, the candidates' candor on the issues was made possible by the format of the debate, which included independent Huffington and Green Party candidate Camejo, and the structure of this unusual election. The Oct. 7 recall vote includes two separate questions, with one asking whether Gov. Gray Davis should be ousted and the other deciding who would replace him.

Given that a smaller slice of the electorate will win the replacement election if the recall succeeds, each of the candidates was talking to a smaller-than-usual segment of the electorate.

"The fact that you don't need 50 (percent) plus one means that you can carve out who you know already agrees with you and speak to them," O'Connor noted. "And that's what they were doing. They were trying to get their base."

Davis, who does need a majority of the vote, had the advantage of a segment all to himself, where he said he was surviving the recall emotionally with the help of "a good wife and a strong faith."

He was almost, but not quite, apologetic for some of his failings as governor. He vowed to spend more time in contact with voters if he is allowed to finish out his second term but suggested that the "town hall" events he is now holding are also giving him a chance to explain the intractable nature of some of the state's problems to his constituents.

"Believe me, this has been an awakening for me," Davis said. "I know people are upset, and it's not fun hearing it day in and day out."

Spokesmen for the one major candidate not participating defended Schwarzenegger's decision to wait for a later debate.

"Our candidate spent the last two days campaigning," spokesman Rob Stutzman said. "He spent today giving a speech directly to the California people."

Afterward, however, an audience member who had asked the recall candidates a question about the lack of state arts funding queried Stutzman about Schwarzenegger's position on the issue.

"Hopefully that will be an issue he can address for you later," Stutzman said.

On Wednesday, at least, the other candidates were addressing the issues and getting their messages through.

"As Woody Allen says, 80 percent of success is showing up," said GOP political consultant Ray McNally. "Every one of the candidates, including the governor, who showed up today succeeded in one way or another in connecting with that part of the voter pie that they want to or need to connect with."