sacramento: Michael Tubbs He is running for California lieutenant governor, returning to politics four years after voters in his native Central Valley ousted him as one of the nation’s youngest mayors. guaranteed income plan The poor people who made him a star.
The 2026 campaign announced Wednesday is Tubbs Because it will give him experience managing a company across the state Activity For an office that receives little public attention and is largely ceremonial. University of California and the California State University Board of Regents.
Yet the opportunities Tubbs sees in office are similar to those he had during his time as mayor of Stockton, blending the power of personal stories with ambitious plans for an oft-forgotten city to become A rising figure among state Democrats looking for opportunity.
“Typically, it’s not about the formal role or statutory authority of a position, but really about the leader in that position … and how they use that position to get the job done and make things bigger or better. Big is meaningful to the people they want to serve,” Tubbs said.
Tubbs, who was raised by a single mother and whose father is in prison, graduated from Stanford University and interned in the Obama White House before winning In 2016, at the age of 26, he became the first black mayor of Stockton.
His biggest splash was getting money from Silicon Valley for a guaranteed income program that would pay poor people $500 a month with no restrictions on how they could use the money. The program was a reboot of an old idea that spawned dozens of similar programs across the country, culminating in the California Legislature earmarking $35 million for a guaranteed income program that benefits pregnant women and former foster children.
But Tubbs’ celebrity status turned off some voters in Stockton, and he lost his 2020 re-election bid to then-little-known Republican Kevin Lincoln.
Since then, Tubbs has followed a familiar political playbook. rollback. He served as an unpaid adviser to Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom and published a memoir while working with a coalition he founded to help roll out guaranteed income programs nationwide.
For Tubbs to complete his comeback and win the job, he must defeat some strong candidates with extensive experience in Sacramento, including Fiona Ma, a Democrat who is completing two terms as state treasurer, as well as a push to State Senator Steven Bradford, best known as Secretary of State.
“I have a record of doing difficult things,” Tubbs said. “When we think about the problems that Sacramento has created or the problems that Sacramento is trying to solve, I just don’t believe that people who have been in Sacramento for decades are going to be able to solve the same problems.”
The lieutenant governor has been a stepping stone to the governorship for some, including Newsom, who served as lieutenant governor for eight years before being elected as the current governor in 2018. Also held that position before winning the state’s top job.
Tubbs said he sees the job as important in its own right. But he still has his eye on the future.
“My hope is to do such a great job… that I have all sorts of options for what to do in four to eight years after the job ends,” he said.
The 2026 campaign announced Wednesday is Tubbs Because it will give him experience managing a company across the state Activity For an office that receives little public attention and is largely ceremonial. University of California and the California State University Board of Regents.
Yet the opportunities Tubbs sees in office are similar to those he had during his time as mayor of Stockton, blending the power of personal stories with ambitious plans for an oft-forgotten city to become A rising figure among state Democrats looking for opportunity.
“Typically, it’s not about the formal role or statutory authority of a position, but really about the leader in that position … and how they use that position to get the job done and make things bigger or better. Big is meaningful to the people they want to serve,” Tubbs said.
Tubbs, who was raised by a single mother and whose father is in prison, graduated from Stanford University and interned in the Obama White House before winning In 2016, at the age of 26, he became the first black mayor of Stockton.
His biggest splash was getting money from Silicon Valley for a guaranteed income program that would pay poor people $500 a month with no restrictions on how they could use the money. The program was a reboot of an old idea that spawned dozens of similar programs across the country, culminating in the California Legislature earmarking $35 million for a guaranteed income program that benefits pregnant women and former foster children.
But Tubbs’ celebrity status turned off some voters in Stockton, and he lost his 2020 re-election bid to then-little-known Republican Kevin Lincoln.
Since then, Tubbs has followed a familiar political playbook. rollback. He served as an unpaid adviser to Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom and published a memoir while working with a coalition he founded to help roll out guaranteed income programs nationwide.
For Tubbs to complete his comeback and win the job, he must defeat some strong candidates with extensive experience in Sacramento, including Fiona Ma, a Democrat who is completing two terms as state treasurer, as well as a push to State Senator Steven Bradford, best known as Secretary of State.
“I have a record of doing difficult things,” Tubbs said. “When we think about the problems that Sacramento has created or the problems that Sacramento is trying to solve, I just don’t believe that people who have been in Sacramento for decades are going to be able to solve the same problems.”
The lieutenant governor has been a stepping stone to the governorship for some, including Newsom, who served as lieutenant governor for eight years before being elected as the current governor in 2018. Also held that position before winning the state’s top job.
Tubbs said he sees the job as important in its own right. But he still has his eye on the future.
“My hope is to do such a great job… that I have all sorts of options for what to do in four to eight years after the job ends,” he said.
