Bonta vs. Schubert: Cheat sheet for 2022 California attorney general’s race
The battle to become California’s attorney general is perhaps the most contested race on the June 7 state primary ballot.
The race pits Democratic incumbent Rob Bonta against an independent, Sacramento Dist. Atty. Anne Marie Schubert, and two Republicans, former Assistant U.S. Atty. Gen. Nathan Hochman and Los Angeles attorney Eric Early — and comes amid debate about rising crime and the impact of decades of criminal justice reform in California.
Here’s a look at the candidates.
BONTA: Gov. Gavin Newsom last year tapped Bonta to replace Xavier Becerra as attorney general after Becerra was appointed U.S. Health and Human Services secretary. Before his appointment, Bonta spent eight years in the state Assembly focused on efforts to modify the criminal justice system to favor rehabilitation over long incarceration.
SCHUBERT: A career prosecutor who ditched her GOP registration in 2018, Schubert is running as a “no party preference†candidate. Schubert, who is openly gay, said she’s the candidate for Californians who have grown “sick of politics†and hopes voters view her decades of experience fighting against child abuse and sexual assault and her 2019 prosecution of the Golden State Killer as proof that she’s right for the job.
HOCHMAN: With a résumé that includes overseeing the U.S. Department of Justice’s tax division and serving as an assistant U.S. attorney, Hochman said he is running a centrist campaign to restore political balance in Sacramento. He has promised to find a middle ground between the tough-on-crime policies of decades past and current laws championed by a more progressive criminal justice reform movement.
EARLY: The most conservative of the candidates, Early wants to investigate school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic and said he would do everything he can as attorney general to “outlaw†critical race theory in California schools. He is opposed to abortion and is a proud supporter of former President Trump.
Times columnist George Skelton has noted that the stakes are high. As Skelton put it:
The attorney general is powerful. The office is responsible for seeing that our laws are enforced — criminal and civil. It can appeal court decisions and bring suits. The last attorney general, Xavier Becerra, sued then-President Trump more than 100 times. Attorney general also is a potential springboard for higher office. Earl Warren, Pat Brown, George Deukmejian and Jerry Brown used the office as a steppingstone to governor. From there, Warren became U.S. Supreme Court chief justice. Kamala Harris won a U.S. Senate seat as attorney general, then became vice president.
Here’s a guide to the race from the pages of the Los Angeles Times and other sources.
More Times coverage
The progressive incumbent Rob Bonta will have to defend his record against tough-on-crime campaigns including Anne Marie Schubert’s.
California voters seem unwilling to cross partisan lines in the state’s two biggest races on the June 7 primary ballot.
Voters will choose the two runoff candidates to compete in the November general election. Democratic Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta is a shoo-in for one slot, columnist George Skelton writes.
Sacramento Dist. Atty. Anne Marie Schubert has spent three decades in courtrooms prosecuting murderers and rapists. Now she wants to be the state’s top cop.
Bonta, a Democrat from Alameda who would be California’s first Filipino attorney general, said that he is focused on campaigning for election to the post if the Legislature confirms his appointment to fill out the remaining term after Xavier Becerra left to become U.S. Health and Human Services secretary in the Biden administration.
Anne Marie Schubert, the Sacramento County district attorney, could be the way conservative governance makes its way back in a one-party state.
Bonta’s attorney general campaign reported raising $1.6 million in contributions since he was appointed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, a financial disclosure report shows.
Skeptics who say the American dream is no longer possible need only look at Rob Bonta, 49, who was chosen Wednesday by Gov. Gavin Newsom to be the next attorney general of California, columnist George Skelton writes.
A lack of marquee races could result in an election in which the voters who show up aren’t representative of California’s diverse population.
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California voters seem unwilling to cross partisan lines in the state’s two biggest races on the June 7 primary ballot.
Profile of Anne Marie Schubert
(Sacramento Bee)
Q&A: Anne Marie Schubert
(San Diego Union Tribune)
Q&A: Rob Bonta
(San Diego Union-Tribune)
Schubert campaign website
(Schubert campaign)
Bonta campaign website
(Bonta campaign)
Eric Early discusses his campaign.
(KUSI)
More guides to the election:
Your guide to L.A.’s 2022 mayoral race
How to vote in the 2022 primary election in California
Where to vote in Southern California
Your guide to California’s 2022 primary election
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