Six candidates running for California governor squared off on the debate stage Wednesday, yet the forum may have created more questions than answers for political observers, as Democrats struggle to coalesce around a candidate ahead of the June primary.
The debate came just weeks after former Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.), who was seen as a Democratic front-runner in the race, dropped out and resigned from Congress after sexual assault allegations surfaced. The former congressman has denied these allegations.
Swalwell’s exit scrambled the field, though it offered a chance for two other Democratic candidates to compete at Wednesday’s debate, hosted by Nexstar, the parent company of The Hill and its partner network, NewsNation.
Democrat Betty Yee also dropped out of the race this week, narrowing the competitive field amid enduring concerns that the number of Democratic candidates could splinter the party’s vote. The top two vote-getters on the June 2 primary ballot will advance to the general, regardless of party affiliation — opening the door for two candidates from the same party to move forward.
With a little more than a month to go until the primary, the candidates are on the hunt for standout moments on the debate stage and beyond that could propel them to the front of the primary pack.
Here are key takeaways from Wednesday’s debate:
No candidate commands the stage
Though the stakes were high for candidates to snag a viral moment or standout response on the San Francisco stage, the 90-minute debate was largely free of fireworks.
The rivals were largely civil, despite some sharp exchanges as the candidates worked to define themselves against their competition. They generally avoided delving into much controversial territory with their answers, and all Democrats agreed to endorse whichever member of their party advances to the general election.
The onus was on Democrats to differentiate themselves in the crowded race and capitalize on Swalwell’s departure, and it remains to be seen whether any of the candidates was able to move the needle.
The campaigns, however, took quickly to social media to seize on debate moments.
Democratic billionaire Tom Steyer’s team, for example, knocked former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, a fellow Democrat, for mistakenly referring to President Trump’s war in Iran as “war in Iraq.” If a video takes off in the hours or days after the debate, it could end up being pivotal in reaching voters on the fence, even if it didn’t make much of a splash during the live showing.
Democrats avoid explicit Newsom criticism as he stays out of race
Most of the Democratic candidates in the debate avoided criticizing California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) too harshly, as he has so far avoided picking a favorite.
Asked to give the term-limited governor a letter grade on his handling of homelessness, Becerra gave Newsom an A grade “on effort,” the highest of the bunch.
Former Rep. Katie Porter (D) decided on a B, giving him “a lot of credit for calling attention to the problem.” Steyer, who refused to grade Newsom last month, offered a B-minus on this issue.
San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan (D) initially tried to skirt the question but ultimately landed on a B for Newsom on policy and a D for all Democrats on implementation. Both Republicans, former Fox News Host Steve Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, gave Newsom a failing grade.
The answers from Democrats stopped short of any sharp criticism against the governor, who has so far avoided backing a potential successor.
“I’m supporting a Democrat in the runoff and look forward to the voters making that decision very shortly,” Newsom told reporters this week. “There are a lot of outstanding candidates with extraordinary records. I can name seven of them.”
Swalwell’s exit largely on the back burner
The controversy around Swalwell amid allegations of sexual assault and other sexual misconduct — accusations the former lawmaker has denied — was briefly brought up during the debate.
Becerra, who served in the House from 1993 to 2017, was asked during the debate what rumors he had heard about Swalwell when he served in the House. The former California attorney general, who said in a recent interview he was aware of rumors about the former lawmaker, served as the House Democratic Caucus chair when Swalwell was first elected to Congress.
“You hear rumors all the time about all sorts of things. Rumors are not facts, and the caucus — the Democratic caucus — is not a place that adjudicates those things,” Becerra said when asked whether he should have investigated the hearsay when he served in party leadership. “It’s law enforcement that does. If someone had come forward, we could then have investigations.”
Becerra praised the survivors for coming forward with their allegations, noting that he pursued sex trafficking cases when he served as California attorney general.
Swalwell suspended his gubernatorial campaign after it rapidly devolved earlier this month when the allegations surfaced, including accusations that he had sexually assaulted a former aide twice when she was too intoxicated to consent.
He has denied any wrongdoing, but it did little to stop prominent lawmakers and organizations from rescinding their endorsements while staffers exited his campaign and office.
Swalwell later announced he would resign from Congress, maintaining he would “fight the serious, false allegation made against me.”
Although he’s out of the race, his name will still appear on next month’s June 2 nonpartisan primary ballot — as will Yee’s.
Democrats underscore Trump resistance
Democrats on the debate stage positioned themselves in opposition to Trump as they vie to succeed Newsom, one of the party’s most prominent critics of the president.
“I would absolutely fight the Trump administration, because the job of the California governor is to protect Californians, and right now, that includes protecting them from Donald Trump,” Porter said in response to a question about language proficiency requirements for truck drivers.
Steyer emphasized that Trump and the head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have “posted against” him, “but I’m not going to step back.”
Asked how he’d respond to a possible attack from Trump, Mahan said he’d “fight back” but work to “find common ground with this administration on certain issues.”
The crowded field of Democratic candidates running for governor in the Golden State has opened a path for two Republicans advancing to the November general election in the deep blue stronghold.
The California Democratic Party said that polling conducted for the party after Swalwell exited the race showed a still-real scenario of the two Republican candidates, Hilton and Bianco, advancing out of the primary.
“Two Republicans still lead, with Democrats trailing closely behind–a reminder that the risk of Democrats being locked out of the General Election, while low, is real,” the party said in a statement earlier this week on the social platform X, sharing the polling results.
“Chair Rusty Hicks continues to call on every candidate to honestly assess their path to win,” the party added.
But Trump may have scrambled those odds earlier this month by endorsing Hilton.
“It is a deep honor for me to be endorsed by the president of the United States,” Hilton said Wednesday, adding that he “will have a constructive relationship and partnership with the federal government” if elected.
In a state that Trump lost handily in each of his presidential elections, some observers think Trump’s endorsement all but assures a classic, Democrat-on-Republican contest.
For his part, Hilton has shrugged off the suggestion that Trump’s low approval rating in California could factor into the governor’s race — but he also dismissed the idea that both he and rival Bianco will advance to the general.
Still, it remains to be seen whether California Republicans coalesce around one candidate. At the state party’s recent convention, neither Hilton nor Bianco reached the 60 percent threshold of support needed to earn the official GOP nod.
Steyer’s billionaire background comes under scrutiny
Steyer’s billionaire status came under scrutiny on the debate stage, and he may have made a gaffe in addressing his wealth as he pledged to make the Golden State more affordable for Californians.
“I’m the only billionaire on the ballot … but I’m not the only billionaire in this race. The billionaires and corporations are spending big in this race to oppose me,” said Steyer, who ran for president back in 2020.
“Me paying more taxes is not the answer,” Steyer later said, prompting an audible reaction from Hilton. “If one person puts more money into the government, that doesn’t solve it. We need structural change.”
In her closing statement, Porter jabbed that “one candidate is a billionaire who got rich off polluters and ICE prisons and is now using that money to fund this election.”
Steyer, who followed her in closings, again stressed the big-spending groups that oppose him.
Updated at 10:40 a.m. EDT
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