LA JOLLA — In the race for the 50th U.S. Congressional District, La Jollans are the top donors to Democratic challenger Francine Busby’s campaign, giving a total of $71,350 to the candidate, even though they aren’t in her district. The finding is based on a statistical analysis by The Center for Responsive Politics (CRP), an independent nonprofit research group. The center broke down campaign contributions by ZIP code, and in this case, the numbers are representative of either the donor’s home or business address — whichever he or she listed as 92037 when making the contribution. Republican incumbent Brian Bilbray’s top donors have come from Rancho Santa Fe, totaling $107,349, according to CRP. La Jollans gave the second-largest amount to Bilbray’s campaign war chest — a total of $53,835. The numbers for both candidates are based on contributions of more than $200 from individuals, as reported to the Federal Election Commission. The numbers do not include money contributed by political action committees. No ZIP code data was analyzed for Peace and Freedom Party candidate Miriam Clark or Libertarian Lars Grossmith. While most of La Jolla falls under Rep. Susan Davis’s District 53, La Jolla Democratic Club President Michael McQuary said a lot of candidates come to La Jolla for support because La Jollans “have a big heart and really care about the bigger picture.” “They aren’t just focused on their area,” McQuary said. He added that in District 50, 41 percent of residents identify themselves as Republicans versus 31 percent as Democrats. District 53 is shaped like a long arm along San Diego’s coast, extending from Del Mar south to Point Loma, encompassing all of the La Jolla Village, Torrey Pines and the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), as well as the skinny coastal strip of Bird Rock. The area east of Bird Rock — from La Jolla Boulevard to Mount Soledad — is in District 50. Both La Jolla and Pacific Beach were split into two districts during redistricting efforts in 2000, and they are due to be redrawn again after 2010. McQuary said the districts were “gerrymandered” — that is, redrawn for the political advantage of a given party — to put the Democrats in District 53 and Republicans in District 50. Gary Jacobson, a political scientist at UCSD, said the numbers showing La Jolla’s financial support in its neighboring district’s race are “revealing, but not surprising,” because there’s a tendency for coastal communities to be more liberal. “The coast is generally more affluent and socially moderate to liberal, as well as educated and cosmopolitan,” said Jacobson, who teaches classes in American politics and congressional elections. “You’ll find more social conservatives as you move inland.” In La Jolla especially, he said, the UCSD academic community is generally a “Democratic bunch,” he said. Jacobson said it will be a tough race for Busby. This is the third time she has run against Bilbray in District 50, including the 2006 special election won by Bilbray to replace former Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham, who was forced out of office and is now serving time in federal prison. Busby managed to get about 45 percent of the vote in 2006, which Jacobson said was a favorable year for Democrats, as they took control of the House and worked under an unpopular Republican president. “She has an extra uphill battle this year because it’s a bad year for Democrats,” said Jacobson, noting that President Barack Obama’s ratings have fallen and Americans are unhappy with the economy. “Those circumstances make it virtually impossible for her to win.” As for contributions to Davis’ campaign as the incumbent in District 53, La Jollans have given $50,200. Her competitor, Michael Crimmins, has so far collected only $6,400 in reported contributions from those living in 92037.