San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan's poor performance in the California gubernatorial election raises concerns about his campaign and the issues he addressed, including the 'abundance' agenda.
After arriving at San Jose Diridon Station, San Jose Mayor and California gubernatorial candidate Matt Mahan , center, and his wife, Silvia Scandar Mahan, react to seeing his supporters before walking to his election night party Tuesday, June 2, 2026, in San Jose , Calif.
in decades given that, without any A-listers on the ballot, no one was Gavin Newsom’s anointed successor. With Rep. Eric Swalwell dropping out following sexual misconduct allegations, billionaire Tom Steyer spending $200 million and the possibility, however slight, of Republicans capturing both general-election spots, the race was tailor-made for journalists and pundits.
At the end of the day, the top-two system, which pits candidates from all parties in a jungle primary, resulted in a final choice between establishment-backed candidates that a partisan primary might have yielded. Others can assess the pluses and minuses of Xavier Becerra and Steve Hilton, but the head-scratcher is the collapse of Matt Mahan. Well, collapse is too strong. One needs to gain momentum before losing it.
He never was a serious contender and hasthan San Francisco and is the heart of Silicon Valley. He tried to chart a reform-minded path that conforms closely to what’s known as the “abundance” agenda.
As a free-market classical liberal, I don’t agree with all of its prescriptions, but its emergence in some Democratic circles is an encouraging sign, especially in a state that is, well, dominated by Democrats.the core problem facing blue states: “It has become too hard to build and too expensive to live in the places where Democrats govern. It is too hard to build homes. It is too hard to build clean energy. It is too hard to build mass transit.
” Liberal officials often don’t get the basics right, such as on crime fighting. The abundance agenda is less of a punch list of policies and more of an approach that reduces red tape to enable the construction of homes, energy facilities, infrastructure — rather than just fighting with each other over scarcity. It recognizes that,, “The problem isn’t technical …. The problem is the rules and the laws and political cultures that govern construction in many blue states.
” The abundance movement isn’t averse to government, but it also isn’t averse to getting government out of the way, or even taking on unions that make reform impossible. I’m a strident critic of Republican populism’s desire to use big government to achieve its often-unprincipled ends, but I’ve spent most of my careerThe best way for California to effectively resist Trump-style populism would be to create a governing system that works.
Democrats can’t point to our state or city governments as an effective alternative. Everything is indeed— especially for working people, as Klein notes — and that’s because of regulations and bureaucracies that few Democrats have an appetite to reform. Mahan’s campaign was called “Back to Basics. ” He touted his success in San Jose battling crime and homelessness.
He criticized the state’s out-of-control spending. We have fallen into this lazy, reflexive mindset of always going back to voters and telling them that the only solution to every problem is a tax increase or a new bond or a new rule coming down from Sacramento,” MahanThe Los Angeles Times.
“We need to step back and take a really hard look at our existing spending and increase the level of transparency and accountability in government. ” Some Democrats criticized him for receiving financial support from Bay Area tech titans, but that doesn’t explain his failure given the third-place finisher is a billionaire. I thought he was too muted in his criticisms.
When asked during a debate to grade Newsom on homelessness, Mahan gave him anWe’re also heading into a particularly partisan general election. Mahan offered thoughtful ideas, but voters don’t seem interested in multi-point plans and detailed policy papers. Mahan came across as a mushy moderate in an Whatever his failures as a messenger, the abundance message is better than having Democrats double down on what hasn’t been working — or running to the Left.
It seems like an attempt to revive, which focused on building public-works projects and making government more effective. Even many pre-Trump Republicans lauded that Brown era, when California seriously was a national model. This reform approach has been good for San Jose and for San Francisco, where Democratic Mayor Daniel Lurie has made inroads in addressing that city’s problems.
He enjoysSteven Greenhut is Western region director for the R Street Institute and a member of the Southern California News Group editorial board. Write to him at sgreenhut@rstreet.org.
Please follow us on Google to support us California Gubernatorial Election Matt Mahan San Jose Abundance Agenda Free-Market Liberalism
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Trump rekindles endorsement winning streak as GOP gubernatorial hopeful advances to runoffTrump-endorsed Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette advances to South Carolina GOP gubernatorial runoff after Tuesday's primary, facing a crowded field of rivals.
Read more »
Nancy Mace gets trounced in South Carolina GOP gubernatorial primary after Trump endorsement snubPresident Trump endorsed Evette in the race to succeed term-limited Gov. Henry McMaster on May 29, in a massive blow to the four other Republicans in the primary field, including Mace.
Read more »
Steve Hilton moves to California gubernatorial general election, says Golden State has a 'chance for change'GOP candidate Steve Hilton advances to California's November gubernatorial election, saying the state has a 'chance for change' as he prepares to face Xavier Becerra.
Read more »
Xavier Becerra Leads Steve Hilton in California Gubernatorial PollA poll by the Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies shows Democratic candidate Xavier Becerra leading Republican Steve Hilton by 21 percentage points in the race for California governor.
Read more »