Becerra looks likely to pull off California comeback |
Becerra looks likely to pull off California comeback
Former Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra (D) looks poised to finish as one of the front-runners Tuesday in the race to succeed California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D), a remarkable arc for the candidate who polled in just single digits a few months ago.
Democrats credit several factors for Becerra’s momentum: former Rep. Eric Swalwell’s (D-Calif.) exit from the primary in mid-April; Becerra’s experience running statewide; voter skepticism over billionaires like Tom Steyer; and the potential superlative that Democrats could elect their first Latino governor in the Golden State in more than a century.
While polling indicates Becerra and Republican Steve Hilton are likely to proceed to the November general election, some Democrats warn against counting Steyer out of placing within the top two — particularly as some polling shows a portion of the electorate still undecided.
“There’s a huge chunk of votes that are sitting out there uncommitted at the moment,” veteran Democratic strategist Darry Sragow said. “My guess is most of them are Democrats, because Republicans, again, just make up their minds pretty early and stick to their guns. And so it may be that Steyer, as well as Becerra, is the beneficiary of a surge.”
The California gubernatorial primary is coming to a head Tuesday — less than two months after sexual assault accusations against Swalwell, once seen as the Democratic front-runner, upended the race.
Becerra, who months ago regularly hovered in the single digits in the polls, has slowly seen momentum grow in the weeks since. He has framed the race around his experience as the Biden administration’s HHS secretary, his four-year stint as California attorney general and his 12 terms in the House on the Ways and Means Committee.
“You need someone who’s gone through these tough times and knows what it’s like to have to balance a big budget, someone who knows what it’s like to deal with emergencies, crises, and knows how to get out of them,” Becerra told KCRA 3 in an interview in April.
Several of Swalwell’s former endorsers — the California Medical Association and California Professional Firefighters — have since backed the former Biden administration Cabinet official, while others, like the California Teachers Association, moved toward Steyer.
Most notably, recent polls have largely........