{"id":47137,"date":"2026-03-11T12:41:36","date_gmt":"2026-03-11T19:41:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=47137"},"modified":"2026-03-11T12:42:03","modified_gmt":"2026-03-11T19:42:03","slug":"obama-should-endorse-in-ca-governors-race","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2026\/03\/11\/obama-should-endorse-in-ca-governors-race\/","title":{"rendered":"Obama Should Endorse in CA Governor\u2019s Race"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

by\u00a0Randy Shaw<\/a>\u00a0on\u00a0March 9, 2026 (BeyondChron.org)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

Avoiding a Republican Runoff<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you haven\u2019t yet paid attention to the California Governor\u2019s race, the main storyline is this: a crowded Democratic Party field has raised fears that the top two finishers will be Republican. Last Friday was the deadline for candidates to remove their names from the ballot. Only one did. Tony Thurmond, among the candidates at the bottom in polls, accused the state Party of racism<\/a> in urging them to withdraw.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The three leading Democrats in the late February PPIC poll<\/a> are Katie Porter,  Tom Steyer, and Eric Swalwell. But over half the electorate hasn\u2019t started to follow the race. That\u2019s a major reason why other Democrats with low poll numbers are staying in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So how do Democrats get candidate to stand out in order to ensure there are not two Republicans in the November runoff? The only way I see this happening is for key influencers to unify behind a single candidate or at most three.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m thinking of Barack Obama. If Obama endorsed a candidate, wouldn\u2019t that person  automatically become the frontrunner? Wouldn\u2019t Democrats having trouble choosing among candidates have the guidance they trust?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Obama stepping in to make a California endorsement may sound like an unlikely act of desperation. But he obviously wants a Democrat to succeed Newsom. And given the reluctance of candidates with no chance of winning to leave the field, Obama\u2019s intervention may be necessary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The United States faces difficult times.  I think many would see an Obama Governor endorsement as a savvy move.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I can\u2019t think of anyone else whose endorsement would immediately shake up the race. Newsom has raised the prospect of endorsing a candidate but not sure how many voters that would sway. Neither Kamala Harris nor Tim Walz have anywhere near the following as Obama. The only person as revered as him on the Democratic side is Michelle Obama.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maybe they can both endorse! That would make their endorsed candidate even more likely to finish in the top two.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do Political Endorsements Still Matter?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

My call for Obama\u2019s endorsement comes as political endorsements mean less than they did in the pre-Internet, pre-social media age. Voters can now access on their own so many sources of information for evaluating candidates. They are less reliant on which politicians or groups are supporting particular candidates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last week, California Senator Adam Schiff endorsed Connie Chan for Congress. Will Schiff supporters planning on voting for Scott Wiener switch to Chan? Does Schiff\u2019s backing help raise money for Chan? Or will Schiff\u2019s endorsement mean little in a race where both Chan and Wiener are well known to local voters?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My feeling is that Schiff gave Chan\u2019s campaign increased credibility. Whether that translates into votes or just makes Chan\u2019s supporters feel better is unclear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Endorsements Count<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Endorsements matter most in low-profile races. Most San Francisco voters do not have kids in public schools or have any connection to City College. They don\u2019t pay much attention to what the School Board or Community College Board does. So they look to endorsements in picking candidates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

San Francisco has long been a city where a lot of voters are new arrivals in the city and pay more attention to national politics. That\u2019s why the Democratic Party endorsement typically carried the most weight. For decades the Democratic County Central Committee (DCCC) was seen as representing all Democrats. Now the DCCC is seen as representing either the moderate or progressive faction of the local Democratic Party; the November 2024 election results shows that its endorsements mean less.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Obama Alternative<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Should Obama not endorse a Democrat could still break through the field prior to the June primary. Tom Steyer is committing $68 million to his campaign\u2014let\u2019s see if polls register a steady rise. Matt Mahon is raising tons of tech money\u2014if his numbers jump in March he could have the necessary momentum. Katie Portis has led polls and has a name recognition edge on the field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But there is also a chance that voters remain more focused on Trump and the Mideast war than the Governor\u2019s race. It\u2019s hard for a candidate to make a big jump in polls when voters aren\u2019t paying attention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s why an Obama endorsement is the safest course.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Randy Shaw<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Randy Shaw is the Editor of Beyond Chron and the Director of San Francisco\u2019s Tenderloin Housing Clinic, which publishes Beyond Chron. Shaw’s new book is the revised and updated, The Tenderloin: Sex, Crime and Resistance in the Heart of San Francisco. His prior books include Generation Priced Out: Who Gets to Live in the New Urban America. The Activist’s Handbook: Winning Social Change in the 21st Century, and Beyond the Fields: Cesar Chavez, the UFW and the Struggle for Justice in the 21st Century. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

More Posts<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by\u00a0Randy Shaw\u00a0on\u00a0March 9, 2026 (BeyondChron.org) Avoiding a Republican Runoff If you haven\u2019t yet paid attention to the California Governor\u2019s race, the main storyline is this: a crowded Democratic Party field has raised fears that the top two finishers will be Republican. Last Friday was the deadline for candidates to remove… 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":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47137"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=47137"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47137\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":47138,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47137\/revisions\/47138"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47137"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47137"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=47137"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}