San Francisco, California – A free-for-all primary has put Democrats at risk of being shut out of the race for governor in an otherwise safe state: California.
Stretching along the west coast of the United States, California has a reputation for leaning blue. Democrats outnumber Republicans in the state nearly two to one. Not since 2011 has a Republican held the governor's mansion, or any statewide office at all.
But a crowded field of candidates, coupled with an unusual primary system, has made possible the previously unimaginable: a governor's race in which no Democrat advances to the final round.
“We've never seen anything like this before," said Dan Schnur, a political science professor at the University of California, Berkeley.
California has a non-partisan "jungle" primary, in which the top two vote-getters move forward to the general election regardless of their party affiliation.
Tight contests, however, could make the margin for victory small. No fewer than 24 Democrats will appear on the primary ballot to succeed Governor Gavin Newsom, and the field lacks a standout.
“There has not been a campaign for California governor in modern political history with this large of a field of candidates, or with such an amorphous field to choose from,” said Schnur.
Meanwhile, voter surveys have consistently shown two Republicans, former Fox News host Steve Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, at or near the top of the field.
One March poll, for instance, showed Hilton with 17 percent support and Bianco with 16 percent, the highest rates of any candidate.
The race has prompted existential questions about Democratic strategy and leadership. In a state with more than 10.3 million registered Democrats, could the left-wing party fail to even qualify for the general election?
