In Dan Walters’ CALmatters column this week, the columnist explains the impact of announcements made this week by two California political players.
Former Congressman Doug Ose, who announced his entry into the governor’s race, and billionaire Tom Steyer, who announced that he will not be seeking any office in the 2018 cycle, both helped essentially ensure that the gubernatorial race will feature two Democrats in the November general election.
Because of the system known to many as the “jungle” primary – in which the top two vote-getters, regardless of party, advance to the general – many general elections in blue California end up this way, with two Democrats competing for the victory.
According to Walters, these two announcements served to, in Ose’s case, dilute the Republican vote and, in Steyer’s case, provide a less difficult path for the declared Democrats.
Furthermore, Steyer’s announcement, given his own immense wealth, means that the Democratic candidates will likely require less funding to win, and may even be able to dip into Steyer’s wealth for themselves.
Overall, Walters states that this turn of events reinforced what would have likely happened anyway. These decisions by Ose and Steyer simply made the Dem-vs.-Dem outcome more likely.
To get Walters’ full take on the effects of these decisions, read more here: In-and-out moves make Dem vs. Dem contests more likely
