Biden's former aides test his political legacy in key governor races
Three Biden alumni are on the governor’s ballot in New Mexico, California and Georgia, forcing Democrats to judge whether his record helps or hurts.
Joe Biden is off the ballot, but his former aides are still forcing a reckoning with his political brand. Deb Haaland in New Mexico, Xavier Becerra in California and Keisha Lance Bottoms in Georgia turned this governor’s cycle into a test of whether Biden’s governing experience still helps Democrats, or whether it is safer to keep that connection in the background.
The stakes were clear across the calendar. New Mexico and California held primaries on June 2, while Georgia’s governor primary was on May 19. Michelle Lujan Grisham is term-limited in New Mexico, and Gavin Newsom is termed out in California, opening contests in which former Biden officials tried to run on local issues, personal biography and executive experience rather than the White House they once served in.
Haaland, who led the Interior Department, advanced in New Mexico, where she was competing with Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman for the Democratic nomination. If elected, Haaland would become the first Native American woman to serve as governor of any state. Becerra, who ran Health and Human Services, moved on to the general election in California after an all-party primary with about 60 hopefuls and a top-two system that sent the highest vote-getters forward. Former Biden officials have discussed Becerra’s rise with skepticism and surprise, a sign of how unevenly Biden’s record plays even inside Democratic circles.
Bottoms, the former Atlanta mayor and White House adviser, won the Democratic nomination last month in Georgia, keeping the Biden connection visible in a state where Republicans are also leaning on presidential ties. Lt. Gov. Burt Jones has Donald Trump’s endorsement, while health care executive Rick Jackson is testing that backing by pouring more than $83 million of his personal fortune into the race.
The pattern goes beyond these three contests. At least nine Biden administration alumni running for Congress or governor have kept Biden at arm’s length, a cautious approach that reflects the Democratic Party’s unsettled view of the last administration. For some candidates, Biden’s experience remains an asset, especially on competence and governing. For others, it is a liability in a year when voters may want a sharper break. These governor races are showing how carefully Democrats are trying to separate the man from the record, and how much of that record still fits the party’s future.
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