OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
A new survey has found that Republican candidate and former Major League Baseball legend Steve Garvey is tied with Democratic Rep. Katie Porter in the race for the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s U.S. Senate seat.
Politico reported that the poll, which was shared exclusively with the outlet by researchers from USC, CSU Long Beach, and Cal Poly Pomona, found that Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) has a commanding lead among likely primary voters with 25 percent.
“That means the final weeks of the Senate primary contest will likely be [laser-focused] on the tight battle for second place between Porter and Garvey. The poll shows each securing the support of 15 percent of likely voters,” the outlet noted further.
California’s top-two primary will play a decisive role in determining the candidates who proceed to the November general election. The primary will determine whether Schiff faces a likely easier and more straightforward red-versus-blue contest or a potentially costly intra-party showdown with another high-profile Democrat.
Rep. Barbara Lee, the third major Democrat in the race, lags behind her competitors with the backing of 7 percent of likely voters. All other candidates from both parties are polling at 1 percent or lower, Politico reported, citing the results of the survey.
In contrast to recent polls that indicated Garvey’s rise to the second-place position, the latest survey conducted by university researchers suggests that his support might be leveling off at a critical juncture just before mail-in ballots are sent out next week. This is primarily attributed to the fact that a substantial segment of Republican voters, comprising 37 percent, have yet to make a decision.
“It might help Porter squeak through,” Christian Grose, the lead pollster and a political science professor at the University of Southern California, told Politico. “On paper, someone who has the stature that (Garvey) has should be higher. He’s underperforming what one Republican could typically do.”
Grose pointed out that the poll was predominantly conducted after Garvey’s less-than-stellar performance at the initial Senate debate last week, which may have had a negative impact on his standings. Additionally, the Republican candidate has remained indecisive about whether he would cast his vote for former President Donald Trump once more — a position that Democrats Porter and Schiff extensively mocked during the debate.
Grose emphasized that the outcome of the general election might depend on GOP voter turnout and which candidate, Garvey or Porter, is more effective in engaging with the millions of undecided California voters, a demographic that notably includes a significant number of Latino and Asian voters.
Garvey, who helped the Los Angeles Dodgers win the World Series in 1981, says he wants to revive the “heartbeat” of that once-great state.
In an interview with Fox News in December, Garvey explained why he entered the race as a Republican while dismissing opponents in the race who he said only want to represent half of the state.
“Earlier this year, I wondered, ‘Let’s see who I can get behind in California that I can support, that had my values and my commitment to this country,’ and I couldn’t find anybody. You know how strongly liberal [California has become] over the years and generations,” the former first baseman said.
“I woke up one morning and decided to see if there’s a pathway to run for the U.S. Senate,” he added.
“We’ve been actively, over the first probably four months after making that decision, talking to significant people that I trust in the world of politics and then going around California, talking to the people in the north, coastal and central California, and also down south where we are,” the one-time National League MVP said.
Garvey played 14 years for the Dodgers and another five for the San Diego Padres between 1969 and 1987.
