Former baseball superstar Steve Garvey is running for a seat in the United States Senate as a Republican candidate, challenging California’s prominent Democratic federal congressman Adam Schiff in the November election. Despite observers believing Garvey has a slim chance of winning, his candidacy as a sports celebrity at least brings some fresh perspective to California’s largely Democratic-dominated political landscape.
Schiff and Garvey emerged as the two candidates with the most votes in the March 5th California Senate primary election. They will compete in the November election for the U.S. Senate seat long held by the late Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein.
California holds a nonpartisan primary, where all candidates regardless of party affiliation are on the same ballot, with the top two vote-getters advancing to the general election. Given the Democratic stronghold in California, Republicans have sometimes found themselves excluded from statewide contests. In the past three federal Senate elections in California (2016, 2018, 2022), the Republicans didn’t even have a candidate reach the final round.
Feinstein served in the U.S. Senate since 1992 until her death in September 2023 at the age of 90. To fill the remaining term until January 2025 left by Feinstein, California Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom appointed long-time Democratic organizer Laphonza Butler, who opted not to seek election, leaving the seat open to potential contenders.
The election for the Senate seat in November actually involves two separate elections – a special election to fill Feinstein’s remaining term and a regular election to determine who will take over for the next full six-year term starting in January 2025.
In the March Senate primary in California, there were a total of 27 names on the ballot, with three incumbent Democratic federal congressmen vying for the seat – Adam Schiff, Barbara Lee, and Katie Porter.
In the primary, Schiff came in first, with Garvey falling short just 3,478 votes behind him, both advancing to the general election.
Media reports have indicated that Garvey’s success in the primary can be attributed to “thanking” Schiff and his Super PAC for their assistance. It is reported that Schiff spent around $10 million on campaign ads emphasizing Garvey’s conservative credentials and associating him with former President Trump, indirectly boosting Garvey’s image among Republican and conservative voters, surpassing other Republican candidates and sidelining competitive Democrats like Barbara Lee and Katie Porter.
Although Democrats are expected to easily retain the Senate seat in the November election regardless of the Democratic candidate. However, for Schiff, facing a Republican like Garvey in the general election may prove easier than competing against his Democratic colleagues.
California has twice as many registered Democratic voters as Republicans. According to Ballotpedia statistics as of February 2024, 47% of registered voters in California are Democrats, 24% are Republicans, with the remainder being minor party or unaffiliated voters. Since 2006, the Republicans have not won a statewide race in California. Since 1988, the Republicans have not won a federal Senate election in California.
In the 2020 election, Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden won California by a landslide of about 30 percentage points against Trump.
The 75-year-old Steve Garvey was a baseball superstar in the 1970s and 1980s, playing first base for the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres during his 18-year baseball career, retiring in 1987.
He was selected to the National League (NL) All-Star team 10 times, won the NL Most Valuable Player (MVP) award in 1974, and was named MVP of the National League Championship Series (NLCS) in 1978 and 1984.
Throughout his Major League Baseball (MLB) career, Garvey wore the number 6 jersey, which was retired by the Padres in 1988 upon his retirement.
Garvey was inducted into the California Sports Hall of Fame and the Irish American Hall of Fame in 2009. He was also inducted into the Michigan State University Athletics Hall of Fame in 2010 for his time playing and studying at the university, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Health & Physical Education in 1971. The jersey number 10 he wore at the university was also retired in 2014.
In 2019, Garvey was also inducted into the inaugural class of the “Dodger Legends” Hall of Fame.
After his baseball career, Garvey mainly focused on business development, owning his own Garvey Media Group and leveraging his celebrity status in sports marketing and corporate branding. He also engaged in television production, motivational speaking for companies, and served as a corporate spokesperson.
Garvey has endorsed brands such as PepsiCo, Chevrolet, Gillette, and McDonald’s, appearing in product promotions and television commercials.
In October last year, Garvey quietly announced his candidacy for the Senate seat left vacant by Senator Feinstein’s death. It is his first foray into politics and public office, with the backing of the San Diego Police Officers Association.
Despite running as a Republican candidate, Garvey sees himself as a pragmatic moderate, emphasizing that he played for “all fans” regardless of party affiliation back in his baseball days and is now running for “all voters.”
Regarding his support for former President Trump in the 2024 election, Garvey has been vague but has publicly disclosed that he voted for Trump twice in the past.
Garvey has stated that he will run a “common sense campaign,” focusing on key issues including California’s homelessness crisis, “failing school education,” illegal immigration, high crime rates, rising cost of living, wildfires, and environmental management. He personally opposes abortion but does not support a national ban on abortion. In foreign affairs, he believes Israel’s right to self-defense is paramount.
64-year-old Democrat Adam Schiff has represented California’s district in Congress since 2001 and is serving his 12th term. He is best known for spearheading the “Russia investigation” and impeachment inquiry against former President Trump, serving as a House impeachment manager during Trump’s first impeachment trial.
In January 2023, at the start of his 12th term in Congress, Schiff announced his candidacy to run for the Senate seat left vacant by the aging Dianne Feinstein. Feinstein quickly announced she wouldn’t seek reelection. Speaker Nancy Pelosi publicly expressed support for Schiff’s candidacy, and former California Democratic Senator Barbara Boxer also endorsed Schiff.
For the Senate election, Schiff prioritizes environmental issues, clean energy, public transportation, LGBTQ and human rights. He also supports stricter gun control laws, including banning assault weapons, and holding the gun industry accountable for negligence.
On foreign affairs, Schiff calls for a clearer U.S. policy towards Taiwan to send a clear signal to China and emphasize the severe consequences if China were to use force to take Taiwan. Regarding the Israel-Palestine conflict, Schiff, being Jewish, supports Israel’s right to self-defense but calls for a “humanitarian temporary ceasefire” in Gaza.
Outside of politics, Schiff enjoys endurance sports and participated in the first Ironman triathlon held in Washington, D.C. in 2010, where he was the only Congressman in the race. In 2014, he joined a 7-day charity bike ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles to raise funds to combat AIDS, being the first Congressman to participate in the event.
Reportedly, Schiff and his wife met on a tennis court. They have been married for nearly 30 years and have two children together.
According to a 2018 report in The New Yorker, Schiff has been “writing screenplays” in his spare time over the years, including a murder mystery, a story set after the Holocaust, and a spy drama.
In a video released by Garvey in October 2023 announcing his Senate candidacy, he said, “It’s time to come off the bench, put on the uniform, get back into the game.”
The National Public Radio (NPR) reported in March this year following Garvey’s primary victory that in the 1970s and 1980s, baseball fans were accustomed to Steve Garvey hitting game-winning home runs and key hits in critical games, leading the Los Angeles Dodgers to victory in the 1981 World Series. Garvey spent nearly 20 years on the baseball field, being named MVP by both the Dodgers and the Padres. Now, the former first baseman is entering a vastly different competition – vying against Democratic Congressman Adam Schiff for California’s U.S. Senate seat.
However, Garvey is confident in his abilities. In the primary, he cited California’s long-standing issues of homelessness crises, seven-digit home prices, population decrease, and rampant vandalism as reasons for needing “new voices, new ideas” in the state. He said, “We need to reinvigorate California.”
Garvey also seems to be following the path of other prominent athletes turned politicians, including former professional bodybuilder and actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who served as Governor of California from 2003 to 2011, and former NFL player and Utah Congressman Burgess Owens, as well as former basketball superstar Bill Bradley who also transitioned into being a U.S. Senator for New Jersey.
The Associated Press reported that in his Los Angeles debut, Garvey acknowledged his status as a political outsider without the same experience as career politicians but described himself as a “quick learner.”
Garvey’s campaign team believes a key demographic will be older, wealthier white homeowners in California, many who may remember Garvey’s baseball days. On the other hand, Garvey believes he can still connect with younger Californians despite their potential lack of familiarity, as they share common social issues spanning generations such as high taxes, high gas prices, expensive groceries, and high crime rates.
It is still unclear how the current political climate of the U.S. will impact California’s election. A poll conducted earlier this year by the U.C. Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies indicated that 57% of voters believe California is “on the wrong track,” facing challenging economic prospects.
California Republican Party Chair Jessica Millan Patterson predicts that Garvey will surprise establishment Democrats. She posted on X platform saying that California voters are “ready for change.”
Although Garvey faces an uphill battle, with the registered Democratic voters in California outnumbering Republicans nearly 2-to-1, some believe his emergence in this race is significant.
Lanhee Chen, who ran unsuccessfully as a Republican candidate for Governor of California two years ago, stated that while Garvey’s chances may be slim, his candidacy symbolizes something very different for California Republicans.
Chen, now a research fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, said, “I think for California Republicans, his candidacy represents something very different.”
Chen believes that Garvey may secure support from undecided middle-ground voters dissatisfied with California’s current state, as recent polls show many Californians believe the state is “on the wrong track.”
Chen added, “I think there’s an opportunity for him to draw lines on issues that potentially are more kind of centrist, closer to the middle of California voters.”
Some media outlets have indicated that while Garvey’s chances of winning may not be high, his participation in this election still brings a breath of fresh air to California politics. With California being long-dominated by Democrats, his fame as a former baseball legend may give his Democratic opponent some unease, potentially shifting the political dynamics in a different direction.
Even though Garvey may not have a high likelihood of victory, his candidacy brings a new element to California politics where the Republican National Committee may not heavily invest in Garvey’s campaign due to competing races in November that require more attention and resources.
A May 2024 poll by the Public Policy Institute of California among likely voters shows Schiff leading Garvey by 62% to 37%.
Former California Governor candidate Lanhee Chen mentioned that despite Garvey’s slim odds, his candidacy is significant for California Republicans, offering a different perspective. Chen highlights that Garvey could win over middle-ground voters dissatisfied with the state’s direction.
Analyst Marva Diaz, tracking the California election, believes that a higher voter turnout in November will favor Schiff’s victory despite Garvey’s victory in the primary with low voter turnout favoring the elderly Republicans, as November will bring different dynamics and voter choices.
Diaz further notes that besides Garvey’s personal challenges, the National Republican Committee is unlikely to dedicate significant financial resources to Garvey’s campaign, with more competitive and crucial races in the mix for November.
Despite Garvey’s challenges, his candidacy in this election brings a new element to California politics, presenting a candidate with a different background and perspective that might resonate with some voters. As the candidates move forward towards the November election, all eyes will be on how they navigate the political landscape and address the key issues facing California voters.