California Governor

Updated June 6 Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat who gained national prominence with his early embrace of same-sex marriage and his unabashed support for marijuana legalization, easily won the top slot in the race to replace Gov. Jerry Brown. San Diego-area businessman John Cox, a Republican, won the second spot, defeating former Los Angeles […]

Gov. Jerry Brown is heavily invested in two massive public works projects, twin water tunnels beneath the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and a north-south bullet train. But as he prepares to leave the governorship for a second time, both are far from certain to be completed.

Democrat Gavin Newsom is trying to swat away growing complaints that his campaign tactic of boosting Republican rival John Cox could cause collateral damage in autumn: driving up GOP turnout and thereby undermining Democratic efforts to win key California congressional seats necessary for their party to take control of the House of Representatives.

On stage for 90 minutes tonight in San Jose, the top six contenders to be California’s next governor echoed existing positions, with no one managing to score a breakout moment or strike a fatal blow. And there isn’t much time left. California’s “top two” primary on June 5 will weed out all but the first […]

As our own Jessica Calefati has reported, California public schools tell a tale of two education systems. The achievement gap that separates well-off and needy students mirror the socioeconomic and racial disparities across the state. In 2017, 44 percent of white eighth-graders were deemed “proficient” or above on state math tests, while only 10 percent […]

Voters won't see the questionnaires candidates answer when they seek endorsements from special interests.

The candidate for California governor sees a path through the Central Valley to the November ballot.

As the leading Republican candidate for governor, John Cox offers big ideas for reform—bold and seemingly far-fetched in California’s current political climate.

John Chiang is known as the wonk in the contest to be California's next governor—but sometimes having a nuanced position can be hard to distinguish from failing to state a position at all.