Our Revolution Endorses Billionaire Tom Steyer for California Governor

Our Revolution, the progressive group founded by Bernie Sanders as an outgrowth of his 2016 presidential campaign, endorsed billionaire Tom Steyer for California governor as the race tightened.

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The endorsement came on Monday, with Our Revolution saying its decision was driven in part by “the shakeup over Rep. Eric Swalwell’s exit” and fear that progressives might not “consolidate around a candidate” and instead “hand the gubernatorial seat to a Republican.”

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Our Revolution Executive Director Joseph Geevarghese said, “While yes, he is a billionaire, and that’s a real and important concern, it’s equally important to recognize how he’s used his wealth and power.”

Geevarghese argued Steyer is “the candidate most ideologically aligned with his group’s pledge to fight corporate power in politics — and the most likely to win.”

“The worst thing that could happen is a Republican winning,” Geevarghese said, adding, “Strategically, Steyer and his campaign is best positioned to make sure that does not happen.”

The Intercept reported that when California voters cast their ballots in the June 2 primary, “the two leading candidates will advance to the general election — no matter their party affiliation.”

Fox News described the endorsement as Our Revolution’s “first billionaire candidate, Tom Steyer,” in a “crowded field campaigning to be California's next governor.”

Our Revolution’s endorsement decision was framed as a strategic response to the shifting Democratic field after Rep. Eric Swalwell exited and resigned from Congress last week amid allegations of sexual assault and harassment.

The Intercept said Swalwell “pulled ahead in some polls in March, before dropping out of the race and resigning from Congress last week amid a series of allegations of sexual assault and harassment,” and that “Since Swalwell’s exit, Steyer has risen in polls, along with former Rep. Katie Porter, D-Calif.”

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Our Revolution said it feared that if progressives failed to consolidate, they would “hand the gubernatorial seat to a Republican,” and Geevarghese told The Intercept that “Strategically, Steyer and his campaign is best positioned to make sure that does not happen.”

Geevarghese also emphasized that the group’s pledge is to fight corporate power in politics, saying Steyer is “the candidate most ideologically aligned with his group’s pledge to fight corporate power in politics — and the most likely to win.”

The Intercept reported that since January, polling had shown two Republicans candidates—former Fox News host Steve Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco—in the lead, and that President Donald Trump endorsed Hilton earlier this month.

In a separate account, Fox News said Our Revolution acknowledged Steyer is a billionaire but argued the group suggests he is “using his fortune for good by running a campaign focused on left-leaning policies such as single-payer healthcare, removing corporate influence in politics and "taxing extreme wealth."”

Fox News also quoted Our Revolution’s statement that “At a moment when too many defend the status quo, Tom has taken a different path — challenging the very system that benefits people like him.”

Steyer’s campaign pitch, as described in the sources, includes both economic populism and a shift on single-payer health care that he framed as a change after looking at “the data.”

“Democratic socialist Bernie Sanders' anti-billionaire progressive group has endorsed its first billionaire candidate, Tom Steyer, in the crowded field campaigning to be California's next governor”

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The Intercept reported that Steyer “has spent $120 million of his own money on ads for himself, more than any other campaign in the country this cycle,” and that he “says he will support a wealth tax and has called for billionaires and corporations to pay more in taxes.”

It also said Steyer “has also focused much of his criticism on Trump,” and that “One policy shift since his failed presidential campaign is Steyer’s position on single-payer health care.”

The Intercept quoted Steyer in a campaign video earlier this month: “In 2019, I didn’t think we needed single-payer health care,” and continued, “Boy was I wrong, and boy was Bernie right. I’ve looked at the data. We don’t have a choice. For us to provide health care to everybody who needs it, we’ve got to go to single-payer. And there’s no other way.”

Fox News added that Our Revolution’s endorsement came despite Steyer having “spent roughly $120 million of his own money on his campaign, about 30 times more than his Democratic competitors,” and it said Steyer’s wealth came from “a $20 billion hedge fund.”

Fox News also stated Steyer “made his wealth running a $20 billion hedge fund that invested millions of dollars in coal companies and a private prison company that owned immigration detention centers,” and it quoted Steyer’s line about regret: “I get that it’s ironic. It’s ironic to me, too,” which New York Post attributed to Steyer at a campaign stop in New Hampshire in 2020.

The Intercept further reported that Steyer leaned into economic populism and that Our Revolution saw the race as an opportunity to elect someone who would “both push back on Trump while advancing an aggressive progressive policy agenda at the state level.”

The endorsement triggered immediate criticism framed around hypocrisy and the group’s anti-billionaire identity, with different outlets emphasizing different aspects of the same decision.

The New York Post described the move as a “shocking flip-flop,” saying it “spark[ed] accusations of hypocrisy,” and it quoted Our Revolution’s website response: “Yes, Tom Steyer is a billionaire. But it matters what he is doing with that power.”

New York Post

The New York Post also reported that critics asked, “How does the anti-billionaire group get away with endorsing a billionaire for California governor?” and it included a quip from Republican strategist Steve Guest: “Beyond parody.”

In contrast, Fox News portrayed Our Revolution’s defense as a values-and-winning argument, quoting Our Revolution that “At a moment when too many defend the status quo, Tom has taken a different path — challenging the very system that benefits people like him.”

Fox News also said Our Revolution’s endorsement was “is also about winning,” and it quoted the group’s statement that “In a high-stakes race where Republicans could take the top spot, consolidating behind a candidate who is both values-aligned and building momentum is essential.”

The Intercept emphasized internal progressive strategy, saying Geevarghese argued Steyer is “the candidate most ideologically aligned” and that “The worst thing that could happen is a Republican winning.”

The Intercept also described how Our Revolution considered other Democrats, noting Geevarghese said “We do have a concern about whether she would be the stronger candidate in the field to consolidate for progressives,” referring to Katie Porter.

The sources tie the endorsement to the June 2 primary and to the top-two structure that determines which candidates advance to the general election.

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The Intercept said, “When California voters cast their ballots in the June 2 primary, the two leading candidates will advance to the general election — no matter their party affiliation,” and it described a field where Republicans were leading in polling with Steve Hilton and Chad Bianco.

The Intercept

It also said left-leaning voters were split across a wide Democratic field, with Swalwell and Steyer as frontrunners until last week, and that “Since Swalwell’s exit, Steyer has risen in polls.”

The Intercept reported that Our Revolution is also backing “a Sanders 2020 campaign alum to run California’s insurance system” and working to pass “a proposed state tax on billionaires via ballot measure,” with Geevarghese saying Steyer is “the candidate most aligned with those priorities.”

Fox News added that Steyer’s campaign is built around proposals including “taxing extreme wealth,” and it quoted Our Revolution’s statement that “Our organizers on the ground in California are seeing real energy around Steyer for Governor — and that grassroots engagement helped drive this decision.”

The Davis Vanguard account, while also describing the same endorsement, quoted Geevarghese saying “We stand a risk of giving California to the Republicans. And that would be the worst outcome possible. Democrats could do themselves in here and be their worst enemy,” and it said “The June 2 primary will determine which two candidates advance to the general election under California’s top-two voting system.”

Across the coverage, the stakes of the endorsement are therefore linked to whether progressives consolidate behind Steyer before voters cast ballots on June 2 and whether Republicans can “take the top spot” under California’s top-two system.