\n<\/p>\n
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — <\/span>One tech investor called him \u201cthe only sane\u201d Democrat in the race for California governor<\/a>. Others have dumped millions to boost his campaign, even paying for a Super Bowl ad to introduce him to voters. He\u2019s against a proposed billionaires\u2019 tax<\/a> that has the state\u2019s wealthiest residents threatening an exodus.<\/p>\n San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan<\/a> is tech\u2019s favorite candidate to be the next leader of California.<\/p>\n The 43-year-old former tech executive jumped into the crowded race<\/a> in January, touting himself as a pragmatic problem-solver. A moderate Democrat, Mahan has built his statewide profile mainly by criticizing Gov. Gavin Newsom and the Legislature’s response to homelessness and crime. His centrist message has appealed to tech leaders who want a business-friendly governor to succeed Newsom, a longtime tech ally who\u2019s terming out. <\/p>\n In just three months, Mahan has raised more than any of his rivals, many of whom have been running for more than a year. ( Billionaire Tom Steyer<\/a> is largely self-funding his campaign.)<\/p>\n During a Tuesday night debate on CNN<\/a>, he criticized his rivals as career politicians while crafting himself as the candidate with practical solutions to the state\u2019s challenges.<\/p>\n \u201cWe don\u2019t need MAGA values, but we also don\u2019t need more of the same,\u201d Mahan said, referring to President Donald Trump\u2019s \u201cMake America Great Again\u201d movement supported by Republican rivals Chad Bianco and Steve Hilton<\/a>, whom Trump has endorsed.<\/p>\n But Mahan doesn\u2019t appear to have yet gained the momentum he expected or the widespread name recognition to beat his rivals \u2014 and he\u2019s running out of time to win over voters ahead of the June 2 primary. His ties to tech are of particular concern to labor unions and a segment of Democratic voters who question whether he\u2019ll stand up to the industry.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople do not want somebody who is a puppet of these big tech billionaires, of these AI billionaires \u2014 and that\u2019s who he has always been,\u201d said Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher, president of the California Labor Federation, which has endorsed Steyer, former U.S. Rep. Katie Porter<\/a> and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa<\/a>.<\/p>\n Mahan said he’s the only candidate who has experience with the behemoth industry, pointing to a coalition he created in San Jose where more than 900 public agencies work together to explore responsible ways to implement artificial intelligence in government. In Tuesday’s debate, he said he supports taxing AI companies to fund workforce development.<\/p>\n \u201cVoters can see past the kind of, you know, shallow connection that because I\u2019m the mayor of the largest city in Silicon Valley, that might mean that I\u2019m not willing to regulate tech,\u201d Mahan told The Associated Press. “It\u2019s actually been quite the opposite.\u201d <\/p>\n Observers note California is known for leading the way on policies aimed at both boosting and reining in its home-grown tech industry.<\/p>\n \u201cIf they can ensure that they get a governor in California who\u2019s weak on tech accountability, then that can save them a lot of money across the states,\u201d J.B. Branch of Public Citizen, a progressive consumer rights advocacy group, said of the Silicon Valley leaders supporting Mahan.<\/p>\n Across politics, the tech industry is flexing its political muscle as public skepticism about social media<\/a> and artificial intelligence<\/a> rises. Independent groups backed by tech companies and billionaires have already committed at least $40 million to influence California legislative races. <\/p>\n Political committees backing Mahan have raised more than $25 million, including donations from Google co-founder Sergey Brin, venture capitalist Michael Moritz and Reddit CEO Steve Huffman. <\/p>\n Some donors, like Brin and Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale, are hedging their bets \u2014 they also gave to Hilton, the former Fox News host.<\/p>\n Mahan is \u201cfocused on actually solving problems \u2014 building more housing, improving public safety and making it possible for people to live and work here again,\u201d Garry Tan, who leads a startup accelerator that helped launch companies like Airbnb and DoorDash, said through a spokesperson.<\/p>\n A Harvard graduate, Mahan was classmates with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who he’s said persuaded him to go into tech<\/a> instead of law school.<\/p>\n Mahan was part of the team that built an early Facebook app called Causes that allowed users to promote nonprofit organizations. He then co-founded Brigade, a nonpartisan online voter network. <\/p>\n But that’s not at the center of Mahan’s campaign. He’s focused instead on his upbringing as the son of a postal worker and a schoolteacher. He’s the only major Democrat who wants to suspend the state’s gas tax.<\/p>\n He defeated a labor-backed candidate for mayor in 2022 after serving two years on the city council. As mayor, he convinced council members to direct more city money toward short-term housing to get homeless people off the streets and made them eligible for arrest<\/a> for rejecting shelters. Both efforts faced fierce opposition, but San Jose last year saw a drop in the number of people without access to shelters, according to county data.<\/p>\n He bucked Newsom in 2024 by backing a tough-on-crime ballot measure<\/a>. Mahan has since tamped down his criticism, saying the governor has focused on the right issues. <\/p>\n Mahan has committed to not raising taxes to fix budget holes \u2014 including with a one-time tax on billionaires that most of his rivals are also against. He wants to incentivize elected state officials and appointees by tying future pay raises to improvements on issues like unemployment rates and homelessness. <\/p>\n \u201cRaising taxes isn\u2019t always the answer, Tom,\u201d he pointedly said Tuesday when Steyer pitched a plan to make corporations pay more in property taxes.<\/p>\n Mahan raised more than $13 million in 11 weeks, allowing him to launch television ads to reach voters in some of the most expensive markets in the country. Two independent expenditure groups have spent more than $18 million to boost him.<\/p>\n As of last month, only about 730 donations given to Mahan\u2019s campaign were less than $250, indicating limited grassroots support. In contrast, almost all of Porter\u2019s 46,000 donations were under that amount, as were about 5,600 of those to former state attorney general Xavier Becerra.<\/p>\n Still, voters’ support for the other Democratic candidates “is very soft” Mahan said of his chance. \u201cEven if people are leaning a certain way, they\u2019re still persuadable.\u201d<\/p>\n Tech moguls\u2019 support of Mahan\u2019s candidacy and his plans to regulate them were among the most popular topics during a recent \u201cAsk Me Anything\u201d session Mahan hosted on Reddit, where people can ask questions anonymously.<\/p>\n Several people asked when Mahan would drop out to prevent a catastrophic scenario for Democrats where two Republicans could advance<\/a> to the November election. One asked which Democrat he would endorse after exiting the race. <\/p>\n \u201cI plan to win!\u201d he responded. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n