LOS ANGELES (AP) — Republican former baseball star Steve Garvey and Democratic Congressman Adam Schiff will compete in November He won the U.S. Senate seat long held by the late Dianne Feinstein.
This is a rare opportunity for Republicans to compete in a major state-wide election in this Democratic stronghold.
The matchup also means there will be no women in California's Senate for the first time in more than 30 years.
Mr. Garvey celebrated with cheering supporters at a hotel in his hometown of Palm Desert and warned Mr. Schiff not to underestimate him despite the state's Democratic leanings. He said he would run a bipartisan campaign focused on issues such as inflation, the state's unchecked homelessness crisis and rising crime rates in urban areas.
“They're saying we're going to strike out in the general election,” Garvey said. “Know this: It's not over until it's over.”
Schiff's victory party is marred by rowdy demonstrators chanting “Free Palestine” and “ceasefire now,” forcing congressmen to try to speak on their behalf as they continue to shout. There wasn't. Schiff paused several times and appeared to rush his remarks.
Schiff, who has been an outspoken supporter of Israel's right to defend itself, reversed course on Tuesday. Biden administration's calls for a ceasefire in Gaza as part of a broader agreement that includes: release of hostages. “My position is the same as the administration,” Schiff said. The chaotic scene was a reminder that even states with strong Democrats need to carefully navigate the continuing Israel-Hamas war.
Garvey, a former baseball MVP who played for the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres, was one of the top two vote-getters along with Schiff in Tuesday's election.
California puts all candidates on the same primary ballot, regardless of party, and the two candidates with the most votes advance to the general election. That means Republicans could be locked out of high-profile statewide races, given that Democrats control the state. Republicans have failed to advance a candidate to the general election in two of California's last three U.S. Senate races.
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Still, Democrats are expected to easily win the Senate seats in November, a relief for the party as it tries to protect its slim majority. Republicans haven't won a California Senate race since 1988.
But the campaign nevertheless represents a new era in California politics, long dominated by Ms. Feinstein and a handful of other veteran politicians.
Mr. Garvey and Mr. Schiff also advanced to the November ballot to fill the remainder of Mr. Feinstein's term after the general election.Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom Appointed as Deacon LafonzaButler, a longtime Democratic Party organizer, chose not to seek election to the seat as Feinstein's term ends. The winner of November's election will serve a shortened term until early January, when a six-year term begins.
This race is the first open Senate race in California since 2016. Even before Feinstein announced she would not seek re-election in early 2023, many of the state's ambitious Democrats were looking forward to winning the coveted seat.
Mr. Garvey's candidacy, boosted by his name recognition, especially among older voters, provided an unexpected twist to the race. The dynamic between Mr. Schiff and U.S. Rep. Katie Porter became increasingly tense in the final stages of the campaign, when both were competing for the general election seat.
Garvey, a first-time candidate, earned his spot on the fall ballot. position yourself as an outsider He is at odds with deep-rooted Washington insiders who have blamed soaring food and gas prices, unaffordable housing costs and an unchecked homeless crisis in the city.
He owes much to Mr. Schiff and the super political action committee that supports him. The committee spent millions of dollars on ads highlighting Mr. Garvey's conservative credentials, indirectly raising his profile among Republican and right-wing voters.
He will be in the fall election, but filling that seat is a long shot.
In heavily Democratic California, the Republican Party has been in decline for decades. A Republican candidate hasn't won a U.S. Senate seat in California since 1988, and registered Democrats surprisingly outnumber Republican voters. 2 to 1 margin. Republicans didn't even have a candidate on the general election ballot in the 2016 and 2018 Senate races.
Mr. Garvey hopes to follow in the footsteps of other famous athletes-turned-politicians, including Mr. Garvey, the former California governor. arnold south carolinawalzeneggerUtah Representative Burgess Owens, a former bodybuilder and actor who was the last Republican to hold the state's top job; former NFL player, former professional basketball great and longtime New Jersey senator; Bill Bradley.
He calls himself a “conservative moderate” and says he shouldn't be pigeonholed into traditional labels such as former President Donald Trump's “Make America Great Again” political movement.
Garvey has twice voted for Trump, who lost California in a landslide but remains popular among Republican voters, but said he has not yet made up his mind about this year's presidential election. Although he personally opposes abortion rights, he does not support a nationwide abortion ban and says he will “always support the voice of the people,” and that the state has long been leaning toward abortion rights. It is hinting that it is.
He also has to overcome the resurfacing of sordid details about his private life, including that he has two children with a woman to whom he is not married, undermining the clean public persona he cultivated during his time with the Dodgers. Ta.
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Associated Press writer Sophie Austin in Sacramento, California, contributed to this report.