The California governor’s race is a snoozefest. Do we need better candidates? | Opinion
After mostly lackluster performances at a recent forum attended by five Democratic gubernatorial candidates, it is painfully clear that something (or someone) needs to kickstart this race.
Candidates who appeared at the forum were big on promises — Affordable housing! A reduction in homelessness! Health care for all, including undocumented Californians! — without explaining how they would actually get us there.
In one especially painful exchange, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa was given 30 seconds to explain how he would make housing more affordable.
The gist of his answer was: “What we need to do is build more housing.”
One of the few highlights of the event came when the candidates were asked what they would be for Halloween.
“A whiteboard,” said former U.S. Rep. Katie Porter.
“The next governor,” Villaraigosa answered. (That didn’t make up for his housing response, but at least he got a laugh.)
On paper these are experienced, well-qualified candidates, but they’ve yet to generate much enthusiasm among California voters. In fact, 38% remain undecided, though it is, admittedly, still early in the campaign.
Candidates have time to work both on their platforms and on their delivery. But the bar must be raised soon, because we need candidates who inspire Californians, not put us to sleep.
Is Padilla in or out?
Love or hate Kamala Harris, she would have brought some star power to the race, which is now noticeably lacking, though it did appear that U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla might be able to breathe some life into this anemic contest.
In late August a “rumor” broke that he was considering entering the race, but that was more than a month ago and since then, it’s been nothing but crickets.
Padilla did tell reporters that he is currently focused on the Prop. 50 election in November, which some took to mean that he will make an announcement after the election.
Come on, Senator, why wait? Don’t pull another Kamala by keeping us — and the candidates who have actually announced their intention to run — in suspense.
If you really want the position, hesitation is not doing you any favors. Pundits like CalMatters columnist Dan Walters have begun questioning why the heck you would even want to be the leader of the unruly state of California when you could, theoretically, be set for life in the U.S. Senate.
It’s a valid question, and it deserves an honest (preferably unscripted) answer.
Changing lineup of Democratic candidates for governor
Meanwhile, we have a revolving and still-evolving lineup of Democratic candidates who hope to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom.
On Monday, Toni Atkins, a former state senator and assemblymember and the lone LGBTQ candidate, withdrew from the race, saying she saw no path to victory. (She polled just 1% in a UC Berkeley survey released in late August.)
Yet there was no net loss in the number of candidates. That’s because former Assembly Majority Leader Ian Calderon recently announced he was entering the race.
Calderon, a Millennial-age Democrat, says he represents a “new generation of leadership.” That could inspire younger voters fed up with those members of the gerontocracy still hanging on to party power.
For the moment, however, it’s a Gen-Xer, former Congressmember Porter, who is leading in polls. The Orange County lawyer — best known for using a white board to take down representatives of Big Pharma and Big Banking — got 17% in the Berkeley poll.
She was followed by a Republican, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, at 10%; Democrat Xavier Becerra, a former U.S. health and human services secretary, with 9%; and a former Fox News host, Republican Steve Hilton, with 6%.
The remaining Democratic candidates trailed behind, in some cases capturing just 1 or 2%.
In the months ahead one or more of them could still break out, though they won’t get there by offering up the same tired promises and platitudes we’ve heard from generations of politicians.
For example, don’t tell us we need to build more housing. We already know that.
Tell us exactly how to make that happen, and don’t say by “cutting red tape.” That is an answer we’ve heard way too many times before, and it’s not good enough.
Give us a reason to wake up and pay attention.
Start now, not after the special election or after the first of year. And please, do not stay in or join this race unless you are truly committed.
Californians deserve nothing less.
