California’s very odd election year starts with Republicans possibly leading the governor’s race

The 2026 campaigns for governor, a raft of other statewide offices, 52 congressional seats and 100 slots in the state Legislature officially begin today with the onset of candidate filing. It could be one of the oddest election cycles in California’s 175 years as a state, albeit one that puts the state’s convoluted politics in the national spotlight.

There are so many Democrats running for governor that it’s theoretically possible for a Republican to win the office, despite the state’s deeply blue political profile...