{"id":47352,"date":"2026-03-25T11:29:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-25T18:29:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=47352"},"modified":"2026-03-25T12:15:55","modified_gmt":"2026-03-25T19:15:55","slug":"47352","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2026\/03\/25\/47352\/","title":{"rendered":"California Democrats\u2019 crisis deepens as defiant governor candidates dig in"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Joe Garofoli<\/a>, Political Columnist Updated March 24, 2026 (SFChronicle.com)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gift Article<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

From left, Xavier Becerra, Steve Hilton, Matt Mahan, Tom Steyer, Tony Thurmond, Antonio Villaraigosa and Betty Yee take part in a gubernatorial candidate debate on Feb. 3 in San Francisco.Laure Andrillon\/Associated Press<\/em><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

California\u2019s Democratic Party appears to be stuck in neutral: The party\u2019s leaders are still unwilling to take decisive steps to push low-polling candidates out of the governor\u2019s race, even as the prospect of the deep-blue state electing a Republican leader looms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tuesday marked two developments that underscored the party\u2019s dilemma. First, the University of Southern California canceled<\/a> a high-profile debate after days of controversy over four lower-polling candidates being excluded under the organizers\u2019 criteria. The party also released a  new poll intended<\/a> to pressure low-performing candidates to drop out. But even those at the bottom immediately signaled their intention to stay in the race.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

State Democratic Party leaders, including Gov. Gavin Newsom, appear unwilling<\/a> to force lower-polling Democrats out of the race, which could help consolidate support behind a Democratic candidate and virtually eliminate the chance of a Republican becoming governor in a state where Democrats have nearly twice as many registered voters. The top two finishers in the June 2 primary, regardless of party affiliation, advance to the general election in November. California has not elected a Republican since 2006. And that person was a global superstar with near-universal name recognition: Arnold Schwarzenegger. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The chance of two Republicans facing off in the general election was 22% on Tuesday, according to an online tool<\/a> developed by political data expert Paul Mitchell that runs thousands of simulations of the race. Mitchell on Tuesday advised Democrats to unite behind a candidate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDems should consolidate, but there is a chance they won\u2019t,\u201d Mitchell said. \u201c(Republicans) should consolidate, but there is a chance they won\u2019t. In the overlap where the two parties don\u2019t consolidate, Democrats get boxed out of the general election.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The survey<\/a> showed two Republicans \u2014 former Fox News commentator Steve Hilton (16%) and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco (14%) \u2014 are poised to advance to the general election. They are followed by a tie for third place between Rep. Eric Swalwell, former Rep. Katie Porter and billionaire climate activist Tom Steyer with 10% each. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

They were followed by former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (4%), former Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra and San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan each tied with 3% support. Former state Controller Betty Yee had 2% and state Superintendent Tony Thurmond had 1%. The survey found that 24% of voters were undecided. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

State Party Chair Rusty Hicks said the polling was conducted by California\u2019s largest Black- and Latina-led polling firm and over-sampled Black, Latino, and Asian American and Pacific Islander voters to ensure their voices are heard. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Equally foreboding for Democrats was a Berkeley IGS Poll<\/a> released last week that showed a \u201chistorically high\u201d level of unawareness of the election. Democrats have long relied on their advantage in voter registration to overwhelm Republicans in California. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet Hicks, the leader of the party and the person responsible for its success, declined to say whether he has directly asked candidates to bow out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m not going to disclose any private conversations that have been had or will have, or any future tactics between now and Election Day,\u201d Hicks said Tuesday. \u201cI have deep respect for all of the candidates that have taken the courageous step to put their name forward. They believe that they have a viable path to win.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Later, when pressed about what constituted a \u201cviable\u201d candidate, Hicks said, \u201cIf you\u2019re polling at 1 to 2%, do you have a path to get to 20(%)? That\u2019s the question. Do you have a path to put you in a position to win the primary election that puts you into the general election?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yee, who is polling at 1%, said Tuesday that no state party leaders have asked her to leave the race. At a press conference Tuesday, Yee would not answer directly when asked to lay out her path to win 20% of the vote but said she didn’t think it would take 20% to advance. She also said she would reevaluate her campaign again in mid-April. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for now, Hicks is unwilling to do anything \u2014 including ask Newsom, the most popular Democrat in the state and likely a future presidential candidate \u2014 to ask the unviable candidates to leave. Hicks insists there is a lot of time left (about 40 days) between now and when ballots arrive in the mail to voters. But Hicks already missed his window, as all of the above candidates will appear on ballots. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI have long said that we are prepared to do what is required to ensure that we elect a governor in November of 2026. I want to ensure that everybody has the opportunity to make their voices heard in this campaign, and there\u2019s a lot of road between here and there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earlier this month, Newsom acknowledged that with so many Democrats running and a public largely disengaged from the race, he may be forced to endorse a candidate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen I\u2019m out in the community, people aren\u2019t talking to me about it, which is interesting this late, just weeks before early voting,\u201d Newsom told reporters. \u201cAs a consequence, I\u2019m not directly as engaged as perhaps I might need to be.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Asking candidates to suspend their campaigns has become a very sensitive issue because many of the lowest-performing hopefuls are people of color.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Four of the lower-polling candidates complained last week in a joint press conference about being excluded from a televised debate that was scheduled to be held Tuesday at USC, noting that the only four candidates of color in the race were not invited. Leaders of the Legislature wrote to USC on Monday, asking the university to include the four candidates, saying if USC doesn\u2019t \u201cdo the right thing,\u201d voters should \u201cboycott.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

USC canceled the debate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And now, Democrats are in a deeper hole. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s one fewer statewide televised debate that could have helped voters consolidate behind a single candidate. And the lower-polling candidates are digging in, refusing to leave. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cInstead of wasting hundreds of thousands of dollars on polling, the (California Democratic Party) should be focused on stopping Donald Trump by winning back the House after we passed Prop 50,\u201d said Ajay Mohan, Villaraigosa\u2019s campaign manager.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yee, polling at 2%, appeared to be oblivious to the latest polling. \u201cThe poll confirms what we\u2019ve been saying all along: The race is wide open,\u201d she said. \u201cWe\u2019ve never been more confident that when voters begin to focus on the election and see our new ad campaign, we will rise above the field of billionaire-backed candidates and build a grassroots victory for working people across the state.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mahan, despite being supported by more billionaires than any other candidate<\/a>, hasn’t taken off with voters either. The state party-commissioned poll showed him at 3%, slightly lower than where the Berkeley IGS poll clocked him (4%). Yet he said Tuesday he is not quitting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We don’t plan on leaving the race,” Mahan said. “We plan on going up in the polls and winning the race, because voters are looking for an alternative to what the field has offered over the past year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Becerra and Thurmond, the other low single-digit polling candidates, did not respond to requests for comment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Swalwell\u2019s campaign said the new poll drove home that he is the candidate Democrats should rally behind. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s time for leaders to come together to coalesce around the candidate who has consistently led in support, public polls and primary donations since entering this race,\u201d said Micah Beasley, a campaign spokesperson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steyer was trying to organize an alternative forum to be held Tuesday night in Los Angeles for all of the candidates, but those plans fell through. Steyer spokesman Kevin Liao said all of the candidates of color declined to attend. Thurmond said he would instead appear on social media platforms with a former public school teacher to talk about his platform. Yee said she had two other events to attend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, Republicans are gloating. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat a total joke California Democrats have become,\u201d Hilton said. \u201cHours before a debate, they kill it after their LPDs (Low Polling Democrats) whined about being excluded. These people can\u2019t organize anything.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

March 24, 2026|Updated March 24, 2026 3:38 p.m.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Joe Garofoli<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Senior Political Writer<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Joe Garofoli is the San Francisco Chronicle\u2019s senior political writer, covering national and state politics. He has worked at The Chronicle since 2000 and in Bay Area journalism since 1992, when he left the Milwaukee Journal. He is the host of \u201cIt\u2019s All Political,\u201d The Chronicle\u2019s political podcast. Catch it here: bit.ly\/2LSAUjA<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

He has won numerous awards and covered everything from fashion to the Jeffrey Dahmer serial killings to two Olympic Games to his own vasectomy \u2014 which he discussed on NPR\u2019s \u201cTalk of the Nation\u201d after being told he couldn\u2019t say the word \u201cballs\u201d on the air. He regularly appears on Bay Area radio and TV talking politics and is available to entertain at bar mitzvahs and First Communions. He is a graduate of Northwestern University and a proud native of Pittsburgh. Go Steelers!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Joe Garofoli, Political Columnist Updated March 24, 2026 (SFChronicle.com) Gift Article From left, Xavier Becerra, Steve Hilton, Matt Mahan, Tom Steyer, Tony Thurmond, Antonio Villaraigosa and Betty Yee take part in a gubernatorial candidate debate on Feb. 3 in San Francisco.Laure Andrillon\/Associated Press California\u2019s Democratic Party appears to be stuck in… Continue reading → <\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47352"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=47352"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47352\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":47368,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47352\/revisions\/47368"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47352"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47352"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=47352"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}