ENLIGHTENMENT: The New York Times' Laurel Rosenhall on CA Governor's Race

Hi, this is Vanessa, your ENLIGHTENMENT salon host.

The race to replace Governor Gavin Newsom, who terms out this year, is certainly not boring! California has a top-two primary system that puts all candidates on one ballot, with only the top two vote-getters in the June primary election advancing to November’s general election, regardless of party.

In the past few months, we’ve had:

• so many Democrats running for governor that the Democratic party is begging some of them to drop out
• the possibility that two Republicans could take the two spots on the November ballot
• some cringey caught-on-video moments showing candidate Katie Porter not being very nice to people
• a sexual assault accusation that led to Congressman Eric Swalwell dropping out of the race and exiting Congress
• billionaire Tom Steyer as a top candidate, spending $115 million of his own money in ads — nearly 30 times the amount of his nearest Democratic rival

Mail-in voting for our June 2 primary happens next month, but with so many candidates and ups and downs in this race, do you know who you’re going to pick?

As The New York Times correspondent covering California politics and government, has been at the center of this reporting. I’ve asked her to come talk to us about covering the governor’s race and the scandals, the surging ad spending, the Republicans’ chances, and the "nightmare scenario" facing the Democratic establishment.

Come join me and ask Rosenhall your questions so you can learn more about how California politics work, and ideally make an informed decision when it’s time to vote. Nothing is too dumb, too small or too big to ask.

Tickets are $10 general admission, $5 for students. There will be some drinks and snacks; BYO is very much encouraged.

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