Former California Controller Betty Yee joins crowded Democratic field running for governor

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BETTY YEE FORMALLY ANNOUNCES GOVERNOR RUN

Nearly one year after she told the San Francisco Chronicle that she intended to run for governor, former California Controller Betty Yee, a Democrat, formally announced her campaign in a post on X Wednesday.

“While some worry we have no power over our future in California, I know that we do. We have the power to make California add up for all of us again. That’s why I’m running for Governor,” Yee wrote.

Her post included a biographical video explaining her background and a link to her campaign website.

California’s current governor, Gavin Newsom, term limits out in 2026, and is widely believed to be considering a 2028 presidential run.

Yee has vowed to tackle the crises of affordability and climate change, to bring accountability and transparency to Sacramento, and to “uplift all communities in California” through an inclusive agenda.

Yee joins a crowded field of Democratic gubernatorial hopefuls in 2026, including former Senate President pro Tem Toni Atkins, Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis and Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond. California Attorney General Rob Bonta has publicly entertained a run, according to Politico, but has yet to declare his intentions.

No notable Republican has announced a gubernatorial bid yet.

SCHIFF VOICES CONCERN ABOUT RISE IN ANTI-LGBTQ ATTACKS IN SCHOOLS

California Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Burbank, who is running against Republican Steve Garvey to fill the state’s vacant U.S. Senate seat, led dozens of his colleagues in sending a letter Wednesday to U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, voicing concern about the rise in anti-LGBTQ violence in K-12 schools and calling for federal action to address it.

The FBI’s Annual Crime Report for 2022 showed that anti-LGBTQ hate crimes have hit “staggering records,” according to the letter, with one in five reported hate crimes being motivated by anti-LGBTQ bias.

The letter cites the death of Nex Benedict, a nonbinary teen in Oklahoma, who was attacked in a school restroom by classmates and died the next day. While the state medical examiner’s office ruled Benedict’s death a suicide, and the local district attorney declined to press charges against the students involved in the attack, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights has opened an investigation into the school district.

“This attack following several claims of bullying that went on for over a year, which were not adequately addressed. Nex’s death comes at a time when trans and gender-nonconforming Americans face heightened risk of discrimination and attacks amidst growing politically motivated rhetoric and discriminatory legislation nationwide,” the letter reads in part.

The letter singles out Oklahoma as being the first state, in 2022, to ban the use of nonbinary gender markers on birth certificates; the state also bans trans girls from participating in women’s sports and prohibits trans students from using the bathroom that corresponds with their gender identity. Oklahoma also restricts minors from receiving gender-affirming medical care, the letter notes.

“Because of the increase in racist, sexist, ableist, and anti-LGBTQ policies being implemented around the country, our nation’s schools are undeniably less safe for LGBTQ students, putting their lives at risk. The need for vigorous civil rights law enforcement by OCR is clearer now than ever,” the letter goes on to say.

The letter asks Cardona to provide lawmakers with an update on the status of the investigation within 60 days.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Really nailed it with the photo, here.”

- California Gov. Gavin Newsom, responding to a post on X depicting Republican Idaho Gov. Brad Little and two other white men posing with a proclamation banning “diversity statements” in state government.

Best of The Bee:

• The city of Sacramento will serve as a safe haven for transgender people fleeing from states banning gender-affirming care, the City Council decided Tuesday. The resolution, declaring Sacramento a sanctuary city for transgender people, passed unanimously Tuesday, via Theresa Clift.

• The Department of Insurance wants companies to be able to raise their prices for home and auto policies more quickly in the state. Yet major companies aren’t fans of how it plans to do so, via Stephen Hobbs.

• The Sacramento City Council has appointed a new member to temporarily fill former Councilman Sean Loloee’s seat, via Theresa Clift.

• Ever since California departments and agencies started implementing hybrid work rules, critics have suggested that sooner or later, the state will creep back toward a full-time in-office model. That once seemingly far-fetched scenario could become a reality for some state managers within departments under the California Health and Human Services Agency, according to an unreleased draft memo obtained by The Sacramento Bee, via Maya Miller.

• Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced tech lawyer and major campaign supporter Nicole Shanahan, 38, as his vice presidential running mate Tuesday in Oakland, via Jenavieve Hatch.