California candidates for governor poised for latest TV debate with mail ballots about to go out

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Eight candidates for California governor prepared for another televised debate Tuesday in a crowded, muddled race, with mail ballots headed to voters in less than a week.

Rival Democrats and Republicans — some still little-known to voters — will be making the case to replace outgoing Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is barred from seeking a third term.

The contest in the nation's most populous state is unfolding at a time when Sacramento is struggling with a long-running homeless crisis, wildfire insurance shortages, projected budget shortfalls and staggering housing costs. Voters, meanwhile, are saddled with growing everyday costs for groceries, utility bills and gas.

The 90-minute debate will bring together the two leading Republicans, conservative commentator Steve Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, and six Democrats, including former U.S. Rep. Katie Porter,billionaire Tom Steyer, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, former Biden administration Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and state schools superintendent Tony Thurmond.

In an email to supporters, Porter said she was going on stage “to fight for lowering costs for working families and Californians.”

“Because right now, Californians are getting crushed,” Porter added.

A debate last week, without Villaraigosa and Thurmond on stage, proved largely inconclusive, with no candidate managing a breakaway moment.

President Donald Trump — who has a long-strained relationship with the heavily Democratic state — is likely to figure prominently in exchanges again. Hilton and Bianco support the president — Hilton has his endorsement — while Democrats have vowed to stand in the way of federal immigration raids and Trump's conservative agenda.

California puts all candidates on a single ballot and the two with the most votes go to the November general election, regardless of party. Democrats have been fretting their crowded field could result in two Republicans advancing, a result that would be a historic calamity for Democrats.

Democrats have dominated state government in California for years. Republicans haven’t won a statewide election in two decades, and registered Democrats outnumber Republicans about 2-to-1 statewide.

Steyer, a former hedge fund manager turned liberal activist, has used to personal fortune to dominate TV advertising but has not broken away from the field.

The race was reordered earlier this month after the dramatic downfall of U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell over sexual assault allegations. When he left the race — and then Congress — he was among the leading contenders.

The debate is being hosted by CBS and will air on its state TV stations and websites.

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Austin reported from Sacramento, California.