Six Democrats and two Republicans are still leading in the race to become California’s next governor, with the primary less than four weeks away.
Tony Thurmond is one of the Democratic candidates. He has served as the State Superintendent of Public Instruction since 2019, after previous stints in the State Assembly and as a member of the Richmond City Council.
Thurmond threw his hat into the gubernatorial race early — more than three years before the 2026 general election — but has struggled to gain traction, polling at the bottom of the crowded candidate field and missing several debate stages.
Thurmond has stayed in the race, and spoke with Insight Host Vicki Gonzalez about why he thinks his specific policy proposals and lived experience keep his campaign competitive.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Interview highlights
You announced your run early, in September 2023, as you’re terming out as State Superintendent. Was running for governor a natural next step?
I spent a lot of time thinking about how [I can] continue to serve as I was approaching terming out. I could see that there're just major problems in our state and I'm always someone who believes that government can find solutions. I reflected on it and it just struck me that the governor has the most influence over what happens in our state of any other elected official because of what happens in the budget, or the ability to vote for a bill or veto a bill. I thought, ‘that's what I'll run for and nothing else.’
I love this state. It's been good to me even during tough times, and I want to help this state get better, and I know that we can. I still have hope, and I want to continue the work and help the 40 million people in our state.
What are some of the major problems you want to tackle? And for voters that want something different from the current establishment, how would you be different as governor?
I'm running on a platform of what I call “tabletop issues.” Yes I'm a Democrat, but I'm running to represent all the people in this state regardless of their background. And to me, the real issues in this race are: can you put food on your table? Can you square away some money to buy a home? These things are slipping away for many Californians. Buying a home is the American dream. I have a plan to build two million housing units and to give down payment assistance grants to those who need it.
And, we've got to address homelessness in this state. We have 10,000 homeless teens who are on the street right now. When you think about who's homeless in our state, 40% of the unhoused are older Californians. I'm on a mission to help the people who need help the most. And I'm grateful that I've had experiences working on housing, on homelessness issues, on creating good jobs. We need to create good jobs for folks in our state so that Californians can stay here, and afford to take care of themselves and their families.
These were also priorities for Governor Gavin Newsom. You campaigned for Newsom during his previous runs for elected office, and are an ally of his. But what would you have done differently as governor?
This governor has done a lot of great things. These almost eight years of his administration and mine have been characterized by wildfires and natural disasters of other kinds. I think that the governor has been a very hands-on governor. The reason I supported him all those years is because he's an idea person, he's a visionary.
I think where we’re different is we need our governor to be able to deliver, even on these hard challenges that we're dealing with. I know he made a pledge to build so many units of housing; that hasn't materialized. But this is something that is not new to me. I've got a plan that would allow us to build 2.3 million housing units by the year 2030. It basically involves using surplus property that school districts have in every county of the state. It's a plan that's been studied and I know it can work. I'm giving myself a homework assignment and a timeline to get it done.
I think that's different between me and the governor. He's a big-idea person, but I'm not running for president. I'm running for California. This is where I was born, my children were born. This is a state that I love and I want to see it get better.
You’re currently in a statewide position, but one that’s more limited than the governor. How did being State Superintendent prepare you to lead California?
The position just structurally doesn't have the tools to directly affect the things that our schools need. So I've had to learn how to work with the governor and the legislature to get things done. I've sponsored 20 bills every year for the last nearly eight years. I know how to get policy passed in the state. I know how to work with the key leaders in the state. I've watched as our schools have had to deal with disaster as their new normal, and I've had to step into the gap to help our schools get resources, to help families who've been impacted by fire.
This role has really tested me, and having to lead our state during the pandemic was probably the toughest experience I've ever had professionally. But we've found ways to get things done, and certainly along the way it's given me some insights into how to lead in the state.
California has faced high budget deficits in recent years, with dramatic fiscal swings at times. How would you propose the state realistically spend within its means?
We have to rein in any place where there's been abuse, fraud or waste. There are some programs like our employment compensation programs… fraud is estimated to be in the billions. We need to revamp that whole program and make sure that it's available for those who experience a workforce injury, but to make sure that we have protection in place against those who would try and cheat the system. But we cannot make it just on trying to stamp out waste, fraud, and abuse.
This state has always struggled to have the appropriate amount of revenue. We get it from income tax; that means we've seen these huge fluctuations. During the pandemic, when you would think that people were struggling to work, the state had a record surplus. That means somebody made money off of the pandemic. Coming out of it until now, we have these huge deficits.
We need to balance out our budget and we need new revenue, and we cannot tax working people or middle-class people any more. My proposal is to tax billionaires in our state and then use that revenue for our needs. And, to give a tax credit to working people, middle-class people, so they have more money in their pocket every month to pay for the rising cost of gas, groceries, and housing.
You support some ambitious goals like free childcare, tuition-free college to public universities, single-payer healthcare. Fiscally, how are they feasible if the state is already in the red?
If we provide a universal childcare program it will generate $22 billion for the state of California, essentially it pays for itself. Many other states have done this, it's time for California to create its own program so that kids have quality childcare. We know that's a great equalizer; it's also a great way to support our small businesses... that are childcare owners, largely women businesses and women of color, people who are right now [making] about minimum wage, we can do it better.
A program like single-payer healthcare, when you begin to reduce the cost of overhead, now you're looking at a way to make a single-payer healthcare system manageable. And my free college program, we could start it as a pilot. You can go to college for four years for free, and when you graduate and you get a job, you start to pay some back. I call it “pay it forward.”
We're the fourth-wealthiest economy in the world, but when it comes to taking care of higher education, healthcare, K-12 education, we're crying poor. And that's because we have to stabilize our revenue system and that's what I intend to do.
You oppose many of the Trump Administration’s policies. Are there any avenues where you align with the president?
I think it’s a fine line. On one hand I’ve been part of many lawsuits against this administration. I think his immigration policies are just reckless. When you think about the impacts that they're having on agriculture, on our hospitality, hotel system, on construction, it's supposed to be protecting us, but who are they protecting us from? I propose legislation that would help us to address this. I've supported approved legislation to keep ICE out of hospitals. Now, I am sponsoring legislation that would put a tax on any company that operates one of the seven ICE detention centers in our state.
As governor, I think that we need to work on a way to create a pathway to citizenship for those who just want to work in our state and pay taxes. And in that way, I can work with the members of Congress to ultimately come up with a way to abolish ICE [and] replace it with a program that’s reasonable for protecting our borders and for promoting immigration. At the same time, create a pathway to citizenship for those who want to work here, rather than penalizing those who are actually working here, paying taxes and paying into our social security systems.
And, I intend to work with the president on things like how we get more support from FEMA, for those who've been impacted by these fires. I believe if we align with governors of other states, we can get cooperation from the federal government to support us here in California.
You’re regularly polling at around 1-2% and haven’t been on the debate stage as much. There have been calls for lower-polling candidates to drop out. How do you respond to that?
There's no need for anyone to silence the voices of those who are running for governor. The voters deserve to know every person who is running and to make their choice. And the reality is while polls are interesting and they are data points, polls don't elect anyone — the people of the state do. I know this because I have been in five elections already where they said I wouldn't win, where I was outpolled and outspent. I won all five of those elections. To your listeners I’m saying, “let’s make it six.”.
Unlike many of the other candidates, I always talk about specifics around what we're going to do around housing, homelessness, and jobs. And someone who's got the lived experience of Californians. I grew up on public assistance, on the free lunch program, on food stamps, and a whole lot of government cheese. I went to college and worked minimum wage jobs. I understand the struggles that Californians are dealing with, and I'm imploring Californians to stick to your values. I'm not a billionaire and I'm not backed by corporate interests.
Have you been watching the debates?
I have not. When those debates are on, if I'm not in it, I'm doing what I need to do and that means getting our message out. We've held our own events to speak to voters about important issues. I've been in some of the debates and the ones that I've been in, many sources have said “Tony Thurmond won that debate.” I know that we have a message that appeals to voters and we have something to offer — they just have to know who we are.
