Democrats, Trump ally face off in California governor primary election

LOS ANGELES: Californians go to the polls Tuesday in the first round of voting for a new governor, with a tight three-way race for two run-off spots, while Los Angeles will also be voting for a new mayor. The state’s so-called “jungle primary” pits all comers against each other — regardless of party — with the top two vote-getters advancing to the November general election to replace term-limited Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom. More than 60 names appear on the lengthy ballot papers that have been mailed out to all registered voters in the heavily Democratic state of 40 million people. The latest polls show a three-way split at the top, with former president Joe Biden’s health secretary Xavier Becerra in the lead. Duking it out for second place and the chance to take on Becerra in November are Democrat Tom Steyer and Donald Trump-backed Republican Steve Hilton. Steyer, a billionaire hedge fund manager, has spent more than $200 million of his own money on an insurgent campaign advocating for higher taxes on rich people and lower utility bills for California’s squeezed middle class. Hilton, a former British political strategist and erstwhile Fox News commentator, has campaigned on blaming Democrats for the state’s deep-rooted housing, affordability and homelessness problems. Trump suggested Tuesday that the federal government will only support California financially if voters pick Hilton. “The money will flow because I have confidence in him (but not any of the others!),” Trump posted on Truth Social. Despite its huge economy — California would have the world’s fourth largest if it were a country — and pockets of unbelievable wealth, America’s most populous state is disgruntled. While the tech bros of Silicon Valley enjoy fabulous homes, the soaring cost of houses — and an almost pathological aversion to building new ones — leaves millions struggling to pay the rent. Eye-watering utility bills and the nation’s priciest gas, coupled with high taxes and crumbling public services, add to the general sense of unfairness. There’s also the very visible, and seemingly intractable, problem of homelessness in the cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco.

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