A growing number of California Democrats are embracing an unusual election strategy ahead of the state’scrowded gubernatorial primary: waiting until the final possible moment to cast their ballots.
The tactic is being fueled by anxiety within left-wing circles overthe state’s open primary system, where the top two candidates advance to the November election regardless of party affiliation, infamously earning the name “jungle primary.”
With multiple Democrats splitting the vote and two Republicans performing strongly in polling, some progressive activists fear a scenario in which Democrats are entirely excluded from the general election,CalMatters reported.
The concern intensified earlier in the race when many Democratic voters rallied around former Congressman Eric Swalwell in hopes of consolidating support behind a single candidate.
Swalwell’s campaign, which at the time was gaining momentum as he lead polls among others his block, collapsed after multiple women accused him of sexual assault, reopening uncertainty among Democratic voters searching for a viable contender.
Now, some party activists and politically engaged voters are urging Democrats to hold on to their ballots until late in the election cycle, monitor polling trends and then unite behind whichever Democrat appears most capable of advancing.
Katie Evans-Reber, a San Francisco voter, said the uncertainty has changed the way she plans to vote this year.
“In a normal year,” Evans-Reber said she would likely support former U.S. Rep. Katie Porter, even though Porter currently trails the frontrunners in polling. But Evans-Reber said the political stakes feel much higher this election cycle.
She worries that voters who once supported President Donald Trump but have since become disillusioned with him could shift toward Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, strengthening his campaign alongside Republican Steve Hilton, the former Fox News host who currently leads much of the polling field.
If both Republicans finish in the top two, Democrats will not be in power in a state long hailed as deep blue and reliable for liberal candidates.
Source: California Post – Breaking California News, Photos & Videos
