Tom Steyer’s Controversy in California Gubernatorial Race

Billionaire Tom Steyer found himself in hot water after a misstep in the California governor race. After one of his significant opponents dropped out, Steyer made a statement that quickly backfired—he suggested that Immigration and Customs Enforcement should be abolished. However, it later came to light that his hedge fund was investing in detention centers linked to ICE.

Steyer remarked, “It was also a huge wake-up call to realize that I was in the wrong place, in a job that was taking me to places I never wanted to go.” He insisted that although Farallon Capital Management, which he founded, had invested about $89.1 million in CoreCivic, a company managing the largest detention center in California, he had no role in its operations.

CoreCivic operates five centers in total, with two housing federal immigrant detainees in Kern County and San Diego. Steyer sold his shares in the company back in 2012.

Reflecting on his experiences, Steyer said that this incident confirmed his decision to leave the hedge fund industry. “There’s a reason why I walked away from that business and walked away from a lot of money,” he noted. His campaign seems to be gaining momentum, seeing as a recent poll positioned him as the leading Democrat in the gubernatorial race, especially after Rep. Eric Swalwell exited his bid amid serious allegations.

Interestingly, Steyer’s opponents have been using this investment history to tarnish his campaign image, accusing him of hypocrisy. In response, he defended himself by stating, “Those investments are 20 years old, and I left the company more than 10 years ago, pledging to donate most of the proceeds to charity.”

As the governor race heats up, it’s clear that discussions around his past investments are not going away anytime soon.