Exclusive: Tech entrepreneur joins California gov race
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Illustration: Maura Kearns/Axios. Photo: Cody Glenn/Sportsfile via Getty Images
Tech entrepreneur Ethan Agarwal tells Axios that he's joining the crowded race for California governor, as a Democrat "who believes in capitalism."
Why it matters: Silicon Valley has entered the chat.
- Agarwal already has lined up fundraising events held by such local luminaries as Y Combinator CEO Garry Tan, DoorDash co-founder Stanley Tang, and Kraken co-CEO Arjun Sethi.
- He also has local bonafides, having founded and sold two startups that had raised over $100 million from VC firms like Andreessen Horowitz.
State of play: Gavin Newsom is term-limited, and there are at least a dozen candidates already announced for next June's open primary.
The big picture: Listen to Agarwal talk, and you might think he co-authored "Abundance."
- His pet issue is ending CEQA, a state environmental regulation that Agarwal believes has strayed far from its original intent — instead becoming a silver bullet in the path of new construction.
- "We're losing people to other states because our housing and energy are too expensive — those are infrastructure problems that have been allowed to get out of control because CEQA gets used maliciously."
- He also bemoans other rules and fees that have cost California everything from film productions to autonomous vehicle testing.
Zoom in: Agarwal draws a bright line between his politics and those of fellow Democrats like Elizabeth Warren and Zohran Mamdani.
- "We have some things in common, like being pro-choice and believing in gun control and LGBTQ rights and immigration.
- But I fiercely support capitalism and meritocracy, and believe California could use some business and tech acumen to fix things in a way that other candidates in the race won't."
The bottom line: Agarwal has a steep uphill climb, with virtually no statewide name recognition.
- Expect him to target young voters, Indian American voters, and tech workers.
- The outsider message is summed up by a campaign ad dropping soon, in which the narrator warns fellow Californians that "we're all f****d" if the state doesn't make some major changes.
