By Daniel Trotta
April 22 (Reuters) – California’s crowded race for governor will get its first marquee moment since one-time frontrunner Eric Swalwell abruptly exited the contest, with six candidates set to debate on Wednesday.
Four Democrats and two Republicans will take the stage together starting at 7 p.m. PDT Wednesday (0200 GMT Thursday). In California’s “jungle primary,” the top two vote-getters on June 2 advance to the runoff in November, even if they are from the same party.
Nexstar Media Group will broadcast the debate in six of the state’s largest markets, giving this debate a wider audience than the first televised debate, which aired on two Fox stations in February.
In the poll that determined debate eligibility, Republican and former Fox News host Steve Hilton led the entire field with 17%. Fellow Republican and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco tied for second with 14%. Meanwhile, 23% of those polled were undecided.
The atypical primary rules may provoke unusual dynamics, with zingers directed both across the political aisle and within each party.
Hilton, the most polished candidate at televised political theater, is likely to draw criticism from the entire field. But how he returns fire – especially at Bianco – may be telling, since his best path to victory in a heavily Democratic state would be to advance to November along with another Republican.
“Strategically, Hilton should let Bianco beat him, I suppose, but the reality is these two don’t really like each other. I wouldn’t be surprised if they go at each other pretty hard,” said Rob Stutzman, a Republican strategist and former adviser to ex-Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The four Democrats are courting voters and donors who had backed Swalwell, who quit the race and resigned from Congress this month after allegations of sexual assault, which he denied.
With Swalwell out, hedge fund billionaire Tom Steyer led Democrats with 14% in the poll Nexstar commissioned with Emerson College Polling, followed by former state attorney general and former cabinet secretary Xavier Becerra and former U.S. Representative Katie Porter, each with 10%. San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan polled 5%.
Becerra later jumped into the overall lead in an Independent Voter Project poll, with 23% to Hilton’s 20%.
Mark Baldassare of the Public Policy Institute of California said he expected voters to pay attention.
“The voters have been telling us all along that they’d like to see more town halls and debates, and I think in the last few weeks that interest has become even stronger with a frontrunner dropping out,” Baldassare said.
(Reporting by Daniel Trotta in Carlsbad, California; Editing by Andrea Ricci)
