The race for governor of California in 2026 is on

If the early days — the very, very early days — of the campaign are any indication, choosing California’s next governor could be a matter of splitting hairs and analyzing the differences between the candidates.

At a forum hosted today by the National Union of Healthcare Workers and the Los Angeles Times — the first in a race that won’t see votes until 2026 — the four Democratic front-runners’ positions on progressive priorities sounded likely unresolved problems can hardly be distinguished to define the election in this liberal state.

Create a publicly funded universal healthcare system, an important platform for the union? Check. Raise the minimum wage and allow striking workers to receive unemployment benefits, which the unions have been campaigning for in recent years? Check and check. Do you uphold Gov. Gavin Newsom’s death penalty moratorium and commitment to end sales of new gasoline cars? Check it again.

The agreement was so thorough that participants often began their responses throughout the 90-minute event by noting their agreement with what their colleagues had just said. This left them primarily with biography as a means of going their own way.

Gov. Eleni Kounalakis noted that her background as a housing developer uniquely prepared her to help California emerge from the affordability crisis. Superintendent of Public Education Tony Thurmond, who grew up with public support, said he would fight for working people. Former Controller Betty Yee urged voters to consider her nearly 40 years of public service representing major interests and solving problems. Former Senate leader Toni Atkins said she is the candidate most ready to hit the ground running on Day 1 because of her track record on all of these issues during the legislative session.

Notably, the most moderate major Democrat to enter the race so far — former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who tried to move to the center in an unsuccessful gubernatorial bid against Newsom in 2018 — was not present. Villaraigosa was invited, but a spokesman said he was not present, which may have deprived the forum of clearer differentiation.

One of the few issues raised where the four votes did not sound in lockstep was Proposition 36, a measure on the November ballot to increase penalties for repeat thefts and drug offenses that voters overturned a decade ago, making them felonies again .

Although Newsom has been a vocal opponent of the initiative, voters appear poised to pass it overwhelmingly amid ongoing frustration over crime rates. That puts Democratic officials who have worked to soften harsh sentencing policies that they say has contributed to excessive incarceration in California in a political quandary — especially those who will be on the ballot in less than two years.

Only Yee said definitively that she would vote no on Proposition 36. She said more money for community supervision and supportive services for people getting out of prison would be a better investment.

“We have successful, holistic re-entry programs that can be helpful here,” she said. “This is an economic problem. Many who commit crimes do so because they are just trying to put food on the table for their families.”

Atkins said she favors a legislative package passed this year to combat retail theft, so she likely wouldn’t support Prop 36. The state should focus on punishments for those who commit violent crimes, she added.

“I don’t want the pendulum to swing back and lock up more people. We’ve been there, we’ve done that, it’s not working,” she said.

Both Thurmond and Kounalakis said they were undecided on Prop. 36. Thurmond objected to the measure’s anti-drug crime provisions and called for expanding programs aimed at keeping young people out of the criminal justice system in the first place.

“It has been proven that simply incarcerating more people in this state will not prevent crime,” he said. “I don’t think it’s a good idea to put people in prison who have a drug problem.”

Kounalakis acknowledged concerns about a “deterioration in public safety” and said California needs to “send the message that it’s not OK to steal,” but she worried that “this initiative is complicated and unlikely to accomplish what it does.” the people want.” She said she wanted to keep her vote secret.

Californians won’t elect their next governor for another year and a half — the primary is in June 2026 — but the race is already well underway.

Kounalakis officially launched the campaign in April last year, just months after she was sworn in for her second term as state deputy. A parade of prominent Democratic officials followed, including Thurmond, Atkins, Yee and Villaraigosa – many of whom would make history by winning the governorship.

Atkins, Kounalakis or Yee would be California’s first female governor. Atkins would also be the first openly LGBTQ+ person to lead the state, while Thurmond would be the first Black person and Yee would be the first Asian American.

Even though voters these days are more focused on an insanely close presidential race in November, the early start offers gubernatorial candidates an opportunity to raise the enormous financial resources needed to run a statewide race in California and ingratiate themselves with influential groups, whose support and volunteers this could strengthen the candidates’ own efforts.

That’s what so many key players did today at the National Union of Healthcare Workers Candidates Forum held as part of its annual leadership conference in San Francisco.

Although the union has not yet made an official recommendation, more than 300 members in the audience and remotely conducted a non-binding opinion poll following the forum. They chose Thurmond, the union said in a news release that did not include a breakdown of the results, which could give him momentum in a crowded and choppy field. At least two top Democrats are reportedly still considering whether to enter the race at a later date: Attorney General Rob Bonta and U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra.