The superintendent of public instruction becomes the second Democrat to launch a campaign for California governor in a race that is still three years away.
California Supt. of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond is officially running for governor in 2026, becoming the latest Democrat to launch a campaign in a race that could draw a large field of contenders after Gov. Gavin Newsom is forced out of office by term limits.
“I didn’t come from money, power or influence,” he says in the ad, amid a montage of California governors past — all white men — while an actor playing a young Thurmond, who is Black, watches on. “My story is nothing like theirs.”Thurmond became an orphan at 6 years old after his mother, an immigrant from Panama, died, and his father, a veteran, was absent, according to the ad.
“California may be working for millionaires and billionaires, but for the rest of California, we need real change,” Thurmond said. The ad does not specifically target any potential competitors but aims to position Thurmond as an advocate for the working class in a state that is also home to extreme wealth, a dynamic that could shape the race if California’s powerful labor unions get behind his campaign.
The California Teachers Assn. and other labor unions spent millions to help get Thurmond elected to the nonpartisan superintendency seat five years ago.
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