Governor Gavin Newsom, who says he avoids making endorsements in campaigns where two Democrats are running against each other, has endorsed a Democrat over another Democrat. And, this is not the first time. In August, Calpeek talked about Newsom not endorsing long-term Democrat Karen Bass over Democrat (as of January 2022) Rick Caruso.
According to a Politico story in August, Governor Gavin Newsom stated that “I’ve tried to stay out of these Dem-on-Dem races as a rule, and that’s not atypical in these contests.” In the same story, Politico listed numerous campaigns where Newsom endorsed a Democrat over another Democrat. Since this story aired, Newsom has endorsed Sacramento City Councilmember Angelique Ashby over State Senator Dave Jones.
Recently, Newsom not only endorsed Democrat State Senator Bob Hertzberg over Democrat West Hollywood City Councilwoman Lindsey Horvath, he is appearing in TV commercials supporting Hertzberg. Apparently, Newsom is not concerned that Hertzberg’s reputation as a hugger is still talked about on the campaign trail. For decades, Hertzberg was known as “Huggy Bear Hertzberg” because he hugged people even those he did not know or those who did not want to be on the receiving end of a Hertzberg hug. In 2018, he was reprimanded by the State Senate for “unwanted hugging and other touching”.
Two weeks ago, dozens of prominent women in California politics released a letter accusing Hertzberg of “minimizing the seriousness” of his behavior and called it “aggressive, sexual in nature, and most of all, intimidating.” Read the full letter here. Calpeek has been unable to find any response from Newsom about the letter.