Mayorkas Says He Is Agnostic on California Governor Race

Former Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said he is "agnostic with respect to the California gubernatorial race right now" when asked about endorsing former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra. Speaking Tuesday at Politico's Security Summit in Washington, D.C., Mayorkas cited his current residence in Washington and said he would not be able to answer political questions in a satisfactory way.

According to The Hill, Mayorkas, who was born in Havana, Cuba, and grew up in Los Angeles, told interviewer Alex Burns that there are "many qualified individuals in the California race," including Becerra, his former Biden administration colleague.

Becerra, who previously served as California attorney general under both former Gov. Jerry Brown and current Gov. Gavin Newsom, has been outlining his plans on issues including homelessness and affordability. In a KTLA interview, Becerra emphasized accountability for billions in state taxpayer dollars sent to cities and counties.

When asked which California city was handling homelessness correctly, he said he did not know of any doing it fully right but noted that some were trying. " He stated: "What we’ll also do is work on the other side, because it’s not just about attack, attack, attack.

" Ramos later noted that Becerra’s campaign website lacked a section on homelessness.

In last week's CNN gubernatorial debate, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan said the experience cited by Becerra "didn’t lead to better outcomes," pointing to "85,000 migrant children who were lost" and "more fraud in our health care system" while accusing Becerra of doing "nothing" to lower health care costs in California.

A CBS News/YouGov poll released last month showed Becerra with 13 percent support, placing him in third. The race has drawn attention following the exit last month of the previous frontrunner amid allegations of sexual assault. Democratic consultant David Axelrod described Becerra as "a familiar figure to Californians" and "a pillar of the Democratic establishment" for those seeking continuity.