Thurmond would be the first state schools superintendent to lead California. But first he needs to secure backing from the unions who propelled him to statewide office.
California State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond speaks outside of Enrique S. Camarena Elementary School on July 21, 2021, in Chula Vista, Calif. | Denis Poroy/AP PhotoSACRAMENTO, Calif. — Tony Thurmond is running for governor, entering an open field early in a bid to become the first state schools superintendent elected California’s chief executive.
Donations and endorsements from the influential California Teachers Association and the state’s second largest education union, the CFT, powered Thurmond to his first-term victory in 2018 against charter school executive Marshall Tuck. Labor backing can be crucial in governors’ races, and Thurmond’s prospective opponents, including state Senate Pro Tem Toni Atkins and Attorney General Rob Bonta, have enjoyed support from union heavyweights in the past.
He also played a role in contract talks during past school strikes, including the last two teachers union strikes in Oakland. Thurmond traveled to Los Angeles during a strike earlier this year as Mayor Karen Bass hosted negotiations with the Los Angeles Unified School District at City Hall., in which Thurmond is pictured fist-bumping a striking worker on a picket line, he calls for raising the state minimum wage and calls for higher teacher pay.
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