USC Cancels Gubernatorial Primary Debate Over Candidate Diversity Concerns

The University of Southern California has decided to cancel its upcoming California gubernatorial primary debate. The reason? All the candidates who were invited happened to be white, as reported by several media outlets.

Invited to participate were Republican Riverside County Sheriffs Chad Bianco and Steve Hilton, alongside Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell, former Democratic Rep. Katie Porter, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, and billionaire Tom Steyer, who is known for his left-wing views. According to The New York Times, the selection criteria involved a mix of poll rankings and financial backing. This decision has sparked criticism from several excluded Democratic candidates, including former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, and former California Secretary of State Betty Yee, as noted by NBC Los Angeles.

Becerra commented, “We ask all candidates participating in this race to recognize that if they cannot create a fair process for debate, then not everyone should participate.” He also mentioned that his polling numbers recently sat in the low single digits during a virtual press conference held on March 20.

Villaraigosa, who also received less than 5% of the vote, argued that the criteria for the debate selection seemed flawed. “This was supposed to be based on the polls and the money raised. However, some of us are in a better position in those respects than the invited candidates,” he said during the same press conference.

Meanwhile, state Democratic leaders are working to convince some Democrats to withdraw, citing public opinion polls that appear to show Bianco and Hilton, who is a former Fox News contributor, likely to secure the top two positions in the state’s all-party primary on June 2. This could mean advancing to the general election in November.

Rusty Hicks, chairman of the California Democratic Party, stated, “All candidates must honestly assess a viable path to victory, and I will continue to urge them to do so.” A survey released recently indicated that Hilton and Bianco are leading in upcoming polls.

If Democrats manage to advance to the runoff in November, they would have a considerable edge, as the state has not elected a Republican governor since 2006 and has not nominated a Republican presidential candidate since 1988.