{"id":47881,"date":"2026-04-24T12:10:07","date_gmt":"2026-04-24T19:10:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=47881"},"modified":"2026-04-24T12:10:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-24T19:10:08","slug":"progressive-group-founded-by-bernie-sanders-endorses-billionaire-for-california-governor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2026\/04\/24\/progressive-group-founded-by-bernie-sanders-endorses-billionaire-for-california-governor\/","title":{"rendered":"Progressive Group Founded by Bernie Sanders Endorses Billionaire for California Governor"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Our Revolution is hoping to rally Democrats to Tom Steyer to prevent a Republican from taking the governor’s mansion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Akela Lacy<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

April 20 2026 (TheIntercept.com)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Steyer speaking at a town hall meeting in Culver City, Calif. on March 14, 2026. Photo: Ted Soqui\/SIPA USA via AP Images<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our Revolution<\/strong>, the progressive group founded by Bernie Sanders as an outgrowth of his 2016 presidential campaign, is endorsing its first billionaire as the race for California governor tightens. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tom Steyer, a hedge-fund billionaire and philanthropist, won the group\u2019s endorsement on Monday. Our Revolution said its decision to back Steyer was driven in part by the shakeup over Rep. Eric Swalwell\u2019s exit<\/a> and fear that if progressives fail to consolidate around a candidate, they\u2019ll hand the gubernatorial seat to a Republican.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cThe worst thing that could happen is a Republican winning.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhile yes, he is a billionaire, and that\u2019s a real and important concern, it\u2019s equally important to recognize how he\u2019s used his wealth and power,\u201d said Our Revolution Executive Director Joseph Geevarghese.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steyer, he said, is the candidate most ideologically aligned with his group\u2019s pledge to fight corporate power in politics \u2014 and the most likely to win.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe worst thing that could happen is a Republican winning,\u201d Geevarghese said. \u201cStrategically, Steyer and his campaign is best positioned to make sure that does not happen.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When California voters cast their ballots in the June 2 primary, the two leading candidates will advance to the general election \u2014 no matter their party affiliation. Since January, polling has shown two Republicans candidates \u2014 former Fox News host Steve Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco \u2014 in the lead. President Donald Trump endorsed Hilton earlier this month. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Left-leaning voters remain split across a wide Democratic field, with Swalwell and Steyer as frontrunners until last week. Swalwell pulled ahead in some polls in March, before dropping out of the race and resigning from Congress last week amid a series of allegations of sexual assault and harassment<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since Swalwell\u2019s exit, Steyer has risen<\/a> in polls, along with former Rep. Katie Porter, D-Calif. But with Republicans still leading, progressives are now grappling with how best to achieve their policy priorities in a pool of candidates from which a clear favorite has yet to emerge. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Geevarghese said that Steyer aggressively sought Our Revolution\u2019s endorsement throughout the race. Porter also sought the endorsement, but hasn\u2019t pulled ahead or demonstrated a clear path to victory, Geevarghese said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Porter, a progressive who flipped a Republican seat in Orange County campaigning <\/a>on fighting corporate power, faced backlash last year after videos surfaced of her yelling at a staffer during a television interview. While she has the longest progressive record in office of the Democratic candidates in the field, left voters haven\u2019t necessarily been convinced<\/a> by her campaign. Porter has been endorsed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., former New York Rep. Mondaire Jones, Emily\u2019s List, End Citizens United, and several California unions, but has hovered behind behind Hilton, Bianco, Swalwell, and Steyer in recent polling. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe do have a concern about whether she would be the stronger candidate in the field to consolidate for progressives,\u201d Geevarghese said. He added that even before the implosion of Swalwell\u2019s campaign, Our Revolution would not have supported Swalwell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After previously having coalesced around Swalwell, some allies of Gov. Gavin Newsom are now considering backing<\/a> another more moderate Democrat, former Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra. Becerra has also risen in polling<\/a> since Swalwell\u2019s exit. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Steyer has spent $120 million of his own money on ads for himself, more than any other campaign in the country this cycle, Politico reported<\/a>. While he\u2019s been mostly known in politics for his advocacy on climate change and a failed 2020 presidential bid<\/a> that cost him more than $300 million, Steyer has leaned heavily into economic populism during his gubernatorial bid. He says he will support a wealth tax and has called for billionaires and corporations to pay more in taxes. He has also focused much of his criticism on Trump. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One policy shift since his failed presidential campaign is Steyer\u2019s position on single-payer health care. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn 2019, I didn\u2019t think we needed single-payer health care,\u201d Steyer said in a campaign video earlier this month. \u201cBoy was I wrong, and boy was Bernie right. I\u2019ve looked at the data. We don\u2019t have a choice. For us to provide health care to everybody who needs it, we\u2019ve got to go to single-payer. And there\u2019s no other way.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Geevarghese said Our Revolution, which counts the most members in California after New York, sees the race as an opportunity to elect someone who will both push back on Trump while advancing an aggressive progressive policy agenda at the state level. The group is also backing a Sanders 2020 campaign alum<\/a> to run California\u2019s insurance system, and working to pass a proposed state tax<\/a> on billionaires via ballot measure. Steyer is the candidate most aligned with those priorities, Geevarghese said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHe\u2019s been a partner in the movement,\u201d Geevarghese said. \u201cMost billionaires have used their wealth and privilege to lock in the status quo. And Tom has done the opposite, right? He is actively using his position to upset the system.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steyer has given millions<\/a> of dollars to philanthropic ventures over the years, including funding research on sustainable energy and launching a PAC to help elect candidates running on fighting climate change. Steyer has also faced criticism<\/a> for benefiting from policies meant to help billionaires pay lower taxes and having an investment firm with money in the Cayman Islands, a known tax haven. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our Revolution is Steyer\u2019s first major endorsement from a national progressive group. He\u2019s also been endorsed by the California Teachers Association, another progressive advocacy organization called Courage California, and four Democratic state assembly members. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe stand a risk of giving California to the Republicans. And that would be the worst outcome possible,\u201d Geevarghese said. \u201cDemocrats could do themselves in here and be their worst enemy.\u201d Share<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I\u2019M BEN MUESSIG,<\/u><\/strong> The Intercept\u2019s editor-in-chief. It\u2019s been a devastating year for journalism \u2014 the worst in modern U.S. history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We have a president with utter contempt for truth aggressively using the government\u2019s full powers to dismantle the free press. Corporate news outlets have cowered, becoming accessories in Trump\u2019s project to create a post-truth America. Right-wing billionaires have pounced, buying up media organizations and rebuilding the information environment to their liking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this most perilous moment for democracy, The Intercept is fighting back. But to do so effectively, we need to grow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Donate<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact the author:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Akela Lacy<\/a>akela.lacy@theintercept.com<\/a>@akela_lacy<\/a>on X<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Our Revolution is hoping to rally Democrats to Tom Steyer to prevent a Republican from taking the governor’s mansion. Akela Lacy April 20 2026 (TheIntercept.com) Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Steyer speaking at a town hall meeting in Culver City, Calif. on March 14, 2026. Photo: Ted Soqui\/SIPA USA via AP Images… 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\/47881"}],"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=47881"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47881\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":47882,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47881\/revisions\/47882"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47881"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47881"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=47881"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}