Is California About to Hand Republicans the Governor's Mansion?

Plus some thoughts on Kristi Noem, Markwayne Mullin, and what comes next in Texas

Welcome to this week’s mailbag. So many great questions — let’s get right into it.

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Patty Norman

Hi Dan, I’m always so impressed with my ability to be worried and alarmed on a global AND local level. (sigh). My question is, what are you feeling about the California governor’s primary and pending race? With the threat that the top two go on to be in the general, are we at risk of having to choose between two Republican candidates? Or am I misunderstanding how it works?

Answer

I’ve been getting this question everywhere I go — including at home, where it’s become an abiding concern of my wife.

First, some background: California has what’s known as a “jungle primary,” where the top two finishers advance to the general election regardless of party. This is why so many California general elections end up being Democrat vs. Democrat. When Kamala Harris ran for Senate in 2016, she had to defeat a fellow Democrat in November.

There are currently two Republicans and eight Democrats in the race. In most polling, the top two finishers have been Republicans, with Eric Swalwell, Katie Porter, and Tom Steyer all clustered between 10 and 14 percent.