Laurel Rosenhall, who covers California politics and government for The Times, previews the debate tonight in the governor’s race.
Crunch Time in the California Governor’s RaceThe playing-nice phase of the California governor’s race is rapidly coming to a close. Heading into a pivotal debate on Tuesday, Democratic candidates are now throwing elbows after going easy on each other for months. Candidates know they have to make some moves soon, with the contest wide open just one week before ballots begin hitting mailboxes for the June 2 primary. Tom Steyer, the former hedge fund manager running as a progressive, is attacking Xavier Becerra for accepting campaign donations from oil companies and skewering him for the child migrant crisis that occurred when Becerra was the health secretary under President Joseph R. Biden Jr. (Steyer, a billionaire, has already spent more than $128 million on television ads, making this race the most expensive primary on record, according to AdImpact.) Becerra is pushing back, albeit with a much smaller advertising budget. On Monday, he said on X that Steyer had invested “in private prisons that cage migrants” and was trying to “buy the governor’s office,” among other attacks. Earlier in the day, Becerra’s supporters at CHIRLA Action Fund, an immigrant rights group, said Steyer was using the plight of migrant children to score political points. And Katie Porter, a former congresswoman, is throwing shade at both of them, sending out fund-raising pitches that blast her Democratic opponents as “a self-funding billionaire trying to buy the seat” and “a candidate bankrolled by Big Oil.” I’ll be looking to see if the candidates bring this feisty energy to the debate stage when they gather at Pomona College tonight. It’s been a wildly unpredictable race and several candidates are bunched close together in the polls, especially after the sudden exit of Eric Swalwell earlier this month amid sexual assault allegations. The debate will air from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. Pacific time on CBS stations and affiliates across California. CBS digital platforms will livestream the debate at CBSLA.com, CBS Bay Area, CBS Sacramento and CBS News 24/7. The New York Times has compiled the latest polls in a tracker and bios of the eight prominent candidates remaining in the race. Wishing a happy debate night to all who celebrate!
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