Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown was re-elected to an unprecedented fourth term Tuesday, easily defeating Republican Neel Kashkari.
“I think it’s pretty neat,” Brown told reporters in front of the historic Governor’s Mansion in Sacramento, where no governor has lived since Ronald Reagan in 1967, his first year in office.
“Since I’ve done it three times, I’m not under any illusions that this is some kind of picnic. California is divided. Modoc (County on the state’s northeastern border) doesn’t see the world like Berkeley and Berkeley doesn’t see the world like Orange County.”
Only one other California governor, Earl Warren, was elected to three terms. Brown’s father Edmund G. (Pat) Brown Sr. sought a third term in 1966, but was defeated by Ronald Reagan.
Brown said “the key for the next four years is to make the government do what it’s supposed to.”
“It’s not about any highfalutin ideas, it’s about making work what we’re going to set out,” Brown said.
“We’ve got some big bold challenges whether it’s water, the budget — which we’re going to have to strive mightily to live within our means given all the money we’ve already spent — the criminal justice system, the high speed rail, making sure schools really work.”
Brown did little campaigning on behalf of his re-election, concentrating instead on trying to win passage of Propositions 1 and 2, the water bond and “rainy day” measures on today’s ballot.
Brown discussed California’s improved economy, reduced unemployment and increased spending for education since he returned to the governor’s office in 2011. His campaign website touted Brown’s efforts to reduce the state government’s debt, improve its credit rating and protect funding for education and public safety.
This was the seventh time Brown has run for statewide office. He has lost just once, falling to Pete Wilson in a 1982 bid for a U.S. Senate seat. Brown was first elected governor in 1974 when Kashkari was 15 months old.
Brown’s first two terms as governor did not fall under California’s term limits law, which was approved by voters in 1990 and only covered elections from that point.
Kashkari told supporters at the Westin South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa his campaign “was always about blazing a trail for future Republicans to succeed in California.”
“We have begun the process of rebuilding our party, and now it’s up to all of us to build on the foundation we have laid,” said Kashkari, a former Treasury Department official who was making his first run for office.
“I am thankful for all the support I received and am absolutely committed to continuing our fight to move our party and our state forward.”
Kashkari said he was “incredibly proud of our campaign and what we accomplished to help our party.”
“It won’t happen overnight, but we have laid the groundwork for a Republican comeback in California,” Kashkari said. “We ran an inclusive campaign that reached out to all Californians and showed voters that we are the party that fights for everyone — no matter what neighborhood they come from.
“Everyone I talked to throughout this campaign wanted the same thing — a good job and a quality education for their kids. We showed that these issues cut across political, racial, and geographic boundaries and we put them at the forefront of the discussion across the state.”
— City News Service