Read McClatchy Media’s endorsement for California’s insurance commissioner | Opinion

As California has responded year after year to devastating wildfires, it has become impossible to ignore persistent problems plaguing the state’s insurance system. In particular, the fires that struck Southern California in January 2025 exposed outdated regulatory constraints unable to cope with escalating climate risks. Left to suffer were homeowners and businesses.

Major insurers, including State Farm and Allstate, announced they would stop issuing new homeowners policies and declined to renew many existing ones. This abrupt shift forced countless Californians to turn to the California FAIR Plan — a last-resort, high-cost insurance pool that was never intended to be the main option for so many residents.

It’s apparent to the board that Californians must elect an insurance commissioner who understands the intricacies of the insurance industry — and who can bring real-world expertise to reforming a system in urgent need of repair.

With those qualifications in mind, we endorse Patrick Wolff, a financial analyst and a licensed property and casualty insurance agent. We believe his experience equip him to foster a resilient, consumer-focused insurance ecosystem in California.

Ten people in all filed to run for insurance commissioner, including Ben Allen, a state senator, a thoughtful legislator and former chair of the Senate Environmental Quality Committee. Also running is Steven Bradford, who served in the California Assembly and senate. Allen and Bradford are impressive people whose legislative experience and public advocacy skills are notable. However, much more than political credentials is required of the insurance commissioner.

The job demands the ability to tackle complex regulatory challenges head-on.

That should include modernization of Proposition 103, the landmark 1988 ballot measure governing insurance rates and oversight. Decades-old rules are failing to keep pace with the complex realities of California’s climate and insurance markets.

Leading with thoughtful expertise

Wolff brings more than 25 years of business and financial experience, much of it rooted in insurance and financial markets.

In the early 2000s, he built a home and auto insurance brokerage business at a major bank, gaining hands‑on experience with customers, carriers and the mechanics of the market. Over the past two decades, he has excelled as a financial analyst, scrutinizing industry trends, including those specific to the insurance sector.

This blend of operational and analytical expertise closely aligns with the technical demands of the insurance commissioner’s job.

Wolff impressed with his clear-eyed vision for retooling California’s insurance landscape.

“The job of insurance commissioner is to regulate all of our insurance markets, and that’s what I really want to hone in on,” Wolff told us.

He said he is driven by a desire to advocate for millions of Californians struggling with soaring insurance costs.

“It’s not a question of bold or not bold,” Wolff said. “It’s a question of, is it really thoughtful, and does it really function in the way you want it to? Unintended consequences are one of the fundamental facts of regulation.”

Wolff wants to empower consumers by making critical information and data readily accessible.

“I want to create a program that takes data that already exists at the Department of Insurance. — called market conduct annual surveys — and makes (it) public so that customers are empowered,” Wolff said. “It’s not enough to trust the market. It’s not enough to regulate the market. You have to verify. You have to look at California and compare us to all the other states around us.”

Wolff is a former national chess champion who, in January 2025, played nine opponents at once at Sacramento’s Capitol Park. California’s insurance crisis will be an even more daunting opponent for Wolff if he is elected.