How a Sacramento insider barely became mayor

Dec 04, 2024

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Kevin McCarty talks with a group of high school students.

Kevin McCarty will be Sacramento's next mayor after a close race against progressive Flojaune "Flo" Cofer. | Rich Pedroncelli/AP

NAIL-BITER: The Sacramento mayor’s race is finally done and dusted, leaving the capital city with a pretty divided group of voters and a new mayor-elect with a thin mandate.

As we reported last night, Kevin McCarty prevailed over progressive newcomer Flojaune “Flo” Cofer, but only by the skin of his teeth. He eked out a victory with just 50.5 percent of the vote and 1,938 more ballots.

For a candidate who was expected to consolidate the votes of the two more moderate rivals he defeated in the March primary, the contest ended up being surprisingly tight.

So how did Cofer — an activist-turned-politician who ran on cutting the police budget and a contentious plan to locate sanctioned homeless encampments in underutilized city parks — bring the fight to McCarty?

“I think she was charismatic, and as she met people across the city, folks wanted to give her a chance,” said state Sen. Angelique Ashby, a Sacramento Democrat who served with McCarty on the Sacramento City Council. She tangled with him this year in the Legislature over a xylazine bill he blocked as chair of the Public Safety Committee.

“I think with Kevin McCarty, as he was out running against her, that didn't feel to people as invigorating,” Ashby added. “I don't think that was as exciting to them or intriguing.”

Ashby said voters may have remembered how strongly then-councilmember McCarty opposed a plan to build the Golden 1 Center a decade ago. McCarty was against using hundreds of millions of dollars in public money to help pay for the arena, telling the Sacramento Bee ahead of the 2016 election that voters should be able to weigh in on “big fiscal policy.”

Although the city has, at times, struggled to pay off the Golden 1 bonds — and dipped into the general fund to do so — the stadium is widely credited for reinvigorating the downtown area and keeping the Sacramento Kings in town.

Political consultant Andrew Acosta, who ran McCarty’s campaign, linked the close outcome to difficulties other “establishment” candidates faced this cycle, saying voters are feeling “some annoyance about what they see in front of them.”

“Darrell Steinberg as the mayor, his favorability wasn’t great,” Acosta said. “And I think there was a little bit of like, ‘Hey, let's look for something new.’ And we felt it. And we never thought this race was going to be a slam dunk.”

Ashby said McCarty ultimately benefited from being a well-known local figure.

“It is not exactly a screaming mandate from the people of Sacramento for their next mayor,” she said. “I would think, coming through the door, that would be an indication to Kevin McCarty that there are a significant number of people in the city that he's going to need to spend some time reaching out to, listening to, making sure they feel included in what happens in the next four years in Sacramento.”

IT’S WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON. This is California Playbook PM, a POLITICO newsletter that serves as an afternoon temperature check on California politics and a look at what our policy reporters are watching. Got tips or suggestions? Shoot an email to lholden@politico.com.

A message from Food & Water Action:

Will Gov. Newsom side with the oil and gas industry or Californians after the “worst gas leak in US history?" In 2015, the Aliso Canyon Gas Storage Facility released 100,000 tons of methane and toxic chemicals, endangering public health. Governor Newsom vowed to shut down Aliso Canyon, but his Public Utilities Commission appointees voted to expand it. The PUC will decide Aliso Canyon’s future on December 19th. Learn more.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY

Rep. Katie Porter speaks to supporters at an election night party.

Rep. Katie Porter is opening a new state political committee called Woman Up. | Damian Dovarganes/AP

WOMAN UP: Rep. Katie Porter, who is leaving Congress and weighing a likely bid to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2026, continues to tiptoe closer to getting in. Playbook has learned that Porter is opening a new state political committee, called Woman Up, into which she can start raising money and backing candidates and groups focused on lowering costs for families and standing up to potential attacks on California from Donald Trump.

Porter, who has been making regular trips up to Sacramento in recent weeks, will send her first three contributions to groups dedicated to electing and supporting women in politics — $10,000 apiece to Emerge California, Electing Women (located in the San Francisco Bay Area), and the California Legislative Women's Caucus' campaign arm. With California close to reaching gender parity in the Legislature, Woman Up wants to help break that threshold for the first time.

“On election night as returns came in, my daughter looked at me with tears in her eyes and asked if she still would be able to get an abortion if she needed one. I told her ‘yes, of course, because you live in California.’ But, over the next four years, millions of women across the country won't have that same security,” Porter said in an exclusive statement to Playbook.

“America will be looking to California leaders to help protect our hard won rights and fight for working families. That's why I am launching Woman Up — to help strong women candidates across California and get more women elected to local, state, and federal office.” — Christopher Cadelago

REGISTER NOW: As the 118th Congress ends, major decisions loom, including healthcare appropriations. Key focus: site neutrality. Can aligning hospital and clinic costs cut federal spending, reflect physician costs, and lower patient expenses? Join policymakers and providers to discuss.

ON THE BEATS

Nikki Fortunato Bas speaks at a microphone behind a podium.

Oakland City Council President Nikki Fortunato Bas is in line to serve briefly as interim mayor. | Don Feria/AP Images for AIDS Healthcare Foundation

MAYOR MERRY-GO-ROUND: Oakland could have four mayors in a span of five months following the recall of Sheng Thao.

Council President Nikki Fortunato Bas is in line to serve briefly as interim mayor this month after the city council makes the recall official, but soon she’ll be leaving the council to serve on the Alameda County Board of Supervisors. Bas announced this morning that she will resign her council seat — and the mayoral role — on Jan. 6, when the council will elect a new president. That person would be the interim mayor until a special election in April to serve the remainder of Thao’s term, which expires in January 2027.

Thao was recalled in November amid concerns over crime, an FBI investigation and a financial crisis that has the city at risk of insolvency.

Bas, a Thao ally, defended the mayor’s work on the city’s budget and in bringing down violent crime. “What we are clearly trying to achieve here is stability, continuity of leadership and a singular focus on our financial sustainability, as well as the issues we know Oaklanders care about, including community safety,” Bas said.

However, if there is a recount for the county supervisor seat — which Bas won by just 425 votes — Bas would not resign her council seat early. That would force the city to hold separate special elections and make an already-messy situation even more chaotic. — Eric He

A message from Food & Water Action:

CONTINUING SAGA: The drama continues over state Sen. Marie Alvarado-Gil’s provocative X posts calling Senate Majority Leader Lena Gonzalez “Grand Wizard Gonzalez of the Latino Caucus.”

As we reported on Tuesday, Alvarado-Gil’s ire is likely related to her removal from the Legislature’s Latino Caucus — which Gonzalez chairs — after switching her affiliation to the Republican Party.

The Legislative Black Caucus weighed in on her posts, saying in a statement that they represent “inflammatory race-baiting.”

“Comparing Senator Gonzalez to the Ku Klux Klan — a violent hate group that believes our members are subhuman — is as dangerous as it is detestable and to do so in a public forum is simply beyond the pale.”

WHAT WE'RE READING TODAY

— Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is into regenerative ag. California’s still figuring it out. (POLITICO)

— A new report claims California lawmakers aren’t doing enough to fix the state’s employment safety net. (CalMatters)

— Democrats can’t make a clean break from Joe Biden, and it’s driving some party members up a wall. (POLITICO)

Billions in spending. Critical foreign aid. Immigration reform. The final weeks of 2024 could bring major policy changes. Inside Congress provides daily insights into how Congressional leaders are navigating these high-stakes issues. Subscribe today.

AROUND THE STATE

— Wells Fargo is selling its San Francisco headquarters as it shifts operations toward the East Coast. (The Wall Street Journal)

— Sacramento’s city council passed resolutions to expand its racial equity programs. (Sacramento Bee)

— A modern-day gold rush in the Mojave Desert is driving up land prices. (Los Angeles Times)

— compiled by Tyler Katzenberger

A message from Food & Water Action:

Will Gov. Newsom side with the oil and gas industry or Californians after the “worst gas leak in US history?" In 2015, the Aliso Canyon Gas Storage Facility released 100,000 tons of methane and toxic chemicals. SoCalGas’ disaster forced thousands to evacuate their homes to avoid further exposure to cancer-causing benzene and other chemicals.

SoCalGas took four months to seal the gas leak. Families near Aliso are still suffering the consequences. Instead of shutting it down like Gov. Newsom promised, the PUC allowed Aliso to expand by 3,000%, perpetuating the public health threat.

Over 150 organizations have come together to call for a shutdown of Aliso by 2027, but the PUC is considering kicking the can down the road instead of protecting communities. Gov. Newsom and allies should stand with families, not SoCalGas’ profits. On December 19th, the PUC will decide the future of Aliso Canyon. Learn more.