OAN’s James Meyers
8:43 AM – Tuesday, October 10, 2023
A former Los Angeles Dodgers player is going from the baseball diamond to politics.
74-year-old Steve Garvey announced on Tuesday that he is joining the California Senate race to succeed the late California Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), joining a group of House Democrats to enter the highly anticipated race, which could determine control of the chamber.
“We need fresh voices; we need new ideas. We need people who are going to be exactly that: for the people,” Garvey, who played first base for the Dodgers and the San Diego Padres through the 1970s and the 1980s, said in an interview. “Simply, I’m running for all the people — the things that affect the daily lives of people in California.”
Garvey claimed he is running because of his frustrations with the current state of politics. He said the main focus of his campaign will be on the economy, inflation, securing the southern border and crime.
“Many people know me; they know my name,” he said. “I think people will believe in me, and they’ll feel that their voice becomes my voice and I’ll go to bat for them every day.”
However, Garvey will face a tough uphill battle. In The Golden State, Democrat voters outnumber Republicans almost two to one, and a Republican has not won a Senate race since 1988.
The 1974 MVP award winner will enter a competitive race against Democrat Representatives Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Katie Porter (D-Calif.), and Barbara Lee (D-Calif.).
In his announcement video, Garvey highlighted his campaign by showing off his 19-year MLB career and images of him greeting fans on the field.
“I played in front of millions of fans. I never played for Democrats or Republicans or independents. I played for all of you,” he says. “Now I’m running for U.S. Senate in California — a state that I believe at one time was the heartbeat of America and now is just a murmur.”
According to California State University, political science professor Sarah Hill said the crowded Democrat field could help Garvey make it past the primary and get into the general election.
“We have the top-two primary in California, where the top two candidates from the primary move on to the general election, and that’s regardless of party, and so Democrats could get enough of the vote in California that they can have two people move on to the general,” Hill said. “But if they split the field too much, a solid Republican can sneak in.”
Garvey also said that he believes Californians are looking for a change from what they have previously had in office.
“There’s been a malaise with the people of California. They’ve just given up that they’ve heard one voice and they don’t feel like they have a voice, so they wish somebody would stand up and fight for them, and nobody has,” he said. “And so I think it’s time for somebody to stand up, and that’s me.”
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