Title: Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff and Republican Steve Garvey Advance to California’s Senate General Election
California’s open primary for the state’s Senate seat has resulted in Democratic Representative Adam Schiff and Republican Steve Garvey advancing to the general election, setting the stage for an uphill performance for California’s beleaguered GOP.
In this unique race, Schiff and Garvey were competing in two separate contests: one to fill the remainder of the late Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s term, from November 2022 until January 2023; and another for a full six-year term starting from January 2025.
When Sen. Feinstein passed away last fall, Democrat Laphonza Butler was appointed to the seat. However, Butler announced shortly after her appointment that she would not be seeking a full term.
California’s open primary system allows all candidates to run on the same ballot, and the top two vote-getters, regardless of party affiliation, move forward to the general election. Given that Democrats outnumber Republicans nearly 2-to-1 in California, the seat is heavily favored to remain blue in November.
Garvey managed to secure a place on the general election ballot despite facing two Democratic congresswomen – Reps. Katie Porter and Barbara Lee – who had significantly more funds and aired televised ads. Garvey, who raised just $2.1 million through February 14, did not spend any money on TV ads.
In the closing weeks of the campaign, Schiff and his allies spent millions on ads attacking Garvey as “too conservative” for California. This strategy was intended to galvanize Republican turnout, a move that some strategists argued would inadvertently lead to higher GOP turnout in down-ballot races. Porter criticized Schiff’s approach, accusing him of misrepresenting Garvey’s record while she tried to clarify the truth.
However, Porter also started highlighting another Republican, businessman Eric Early, in her digital ads and during the final Senate debate, arguing that he was the real pro-Trump candidate in the race. This move was seen as an attempt to split the Republican vote.
Despite facing mounting pressure to fundraise and articulate his policy positions more clearly, Garvey will have to step up his efforts during the general election. In primary debates, he often deferred on where he stood on key issues and tried to navigate a middle ground between supporting Trump and distancing himself from the former president.
Schiff, Porter, and Lee entered the race early last year, while Garvey did not launch his campaign until October 2021. Feinstein, who had held the seat for over 30 years, announced in February 2021 that she would not be seeking re-election. She passed away in September at the age of 90.
