Governor’s Race: Katie Porter speaks 1-on-1 on strengths, criticisms and priorities for California

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — On June 2, Californians will choose their top two picks to replace termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom.

ABC7 Eyewitness News Political Reporter Monica Madden is catching up with candidates in these final weeks and spoke one-on-one with former Orange County Congresswoman Katie Porter.

Katie Porter: “I also think it’s important to give voters some choice here.”

In this crowded race for governor, former Orange County Congresswoman Katie Porter believes voters are still looking for detailed policy plans from top candidates.

WATCH: Full interview with California gubernatorial candidate Katie Porter

Monica Madden: “You have several proposals for how to make the cost of living better for Californians, one of them being free childcare, free college tuition at state universities, and then eliminating the state income tax for families that are making under $100,000. What’s your plan for how to pay for those?”

Porter: “I would pay for it by doing for corporations in California what we ask families to do, what we ask workers to do, which is in our higher earning years: when we earn a little bit more, we pay a little bit higher tax rate. And I think that’s a fair thing to ask corporations to do, too.”

The Democrat made the case that she has the most thought-out proposals.

Porter: “Nobody’s said that my idea to pay for it is a bad idea. These are actual things that give California families more money in their pocket. So, when we hear candidates say things like,’When I’m governor, you’ll have health care,’ like, how? And at what price point? So, I’m really focused on very concrete policies.”

Porter also pushed back on criticism about her temperament after a video of her berating a staffer resurfaced earlier in the campaign.

Katie Porter addresses leaked video of her yelling at staffer

Monica: “Do you think that there’s a double standard here?”

Porter: “Temperament is a word that you mostly hear used for show dogs, racehorses, and women candidates. Most importantly, when it happened years ago with that staffer, that’s who I owed the apology to — when I made it five years ago to that staffer. And that’s what really matters to me. That’s the mark of my character. And I think that’s what we ought to be talking about, is what is the character of each of these candidates?”

On the future of California, Porter says she believes AI can be an opportunity if leaders handle it correctly.

Porter: “AI also has the potential to fuel tremendous investment in California. I have done battles with large and powerful interests before with some of the, you know, the most wealthy and well-connected in the world — and come out as a winner. And I think that’s what it’s going to take to steer California in a way that makes things, like, AI positive.”