The race for California governor has taken a transatlantic turn, with two candidates steeped in British and American Labour politics emerging as frontrunners. Former UK government aide Tom Steyer and Biden loyalist Gavin Newsom are leading the pack, underscoring a deepening of political ties between Britain and the Golden State.
Steyer, a billionaire hedge fund manager turned environmental activist, served as a senior policy adviser to UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown during the 2008 financial crisis. His campaign promises echo the language of the British Labour Party: a windfall tax on oil companies, universal healthcare expansion, and free college tuition. “The working families of California deserve the same deal as the working families of Britain,” Steyer told a crowd in Fresno last week. “A fair wage, a safe home, and a chance to breathe clean air.”
But Newsom, the incumbent governor, has his own British connections. His father was a close friend of Tony Blair, and the governor has cited the New Labour era as a model for his centrist, pro-business policies. In a recent interview with the Financial Times, Newsom praised the “Third Way” approach of Blair and Bill Clinton. “We need to make government work better, not just bigger,” he said.
The race is a clash of two different visions of the left: Steyer’s Bernie-style populism versus Newsom’s technocratic moderation. But both men are campaigning on kitchen table issues: the cost of rent, the burden of student debt, and the struggle to put food on the table.
For Californians like Maria Hernandez, a hospital worker in Oakland, the British influence is no surprise. “We watch the same TV shows, we read the same news,” she said. “But can any of them explain why I’m still paying 40 per cent of my wages to a landlord?”
The deepening ties between US and British politics are not just symbolic. Labour Party strategists have been working behind the scenes with both campaigns. Keir Starmer’s team has shared polling data on voter concerns about the cost of living. “There’s a real appetite for Labour-style policy here,” said one campaign insider.
Yet the race also highlights regional inequality. California’s tech boom has created vast wealth for some, while others struggle. In the Central Valley, unemployment remains high and wages low. “We’ve got two guys who speak like they understand the pain of the working class,” said union organiser James Baker. “But one of them is a billionaire and the other has a wine collection worth more than my house. Let’s see who blinks first on taxing the rich.”
The election is not until next year, but the primary is heating up. With political ties across the pond strengthening, the outcome could reshape not just California but the broader debate on the left. For now, voters are watching, waiting, and wondering who will put money back in their pockets.
