On Friday, I moderated a forum with the top Democratic candidates for California governor, focusing on the state’s housing crisis.
California’s current governor, Gavin Newsom, came into office in 2019 promising to build millions of homes. And in the years since, dozens of pro-housing laws have passed, designed to cut red tape and spur more construction. And yet the number of homes being built in California is basically the same as when he took office, and the state’s housing crisis remains, arguably, the worst in the country. So I wanted to know what the next governor would do about it.
We taped this at the Calvin Simmons Theater in Oakland, Calif. The candidates on the stage were Xavier Becerra, a former attorney general of California and health and human services secretary under President Joe Biden; Matt Mahan, the mayor of San Jose and a tech entrepreneur; Katie Porter, a former U.S. representative; Tom Steyer, a former San Francisco hedge fund manager, a climate activist and a philanthropist; and Antonio Villaraigosa, a former mayor of Los Angeles and speaker of the California State Assembly. This panel was recorded live. The Times did not fact-check candidates’ remarks.
Mentioned:
“<a href="https://www.rand.org/news/press/2025/04/cost-to-build-multifamily-housing-in-california-more.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Cost to Build Multifamily Housing in California More Than Twice as High as in Texas</a>” by RAND
“<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/28/opinion/ezra-klein-podcast-thompson-dunkelman.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">What Worries Me Most About ‘Abundance’</a>” with Derek Thompson and Marc Dunkelman, The Ezra Klein Show
Book Recommendations:
<a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/808353/the-hour-of-the-predator-by-giuliano-da-empoli/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Hour of the Predator</a> by Giuliano da Empoli
<a href="https://artepublicopress.com/product/rain-of-gold/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Rain of Gold</a> by Victor Villaseñor
<a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/780686/yesteryear-a-gma-book-club-pick-by-caro-claire-burke/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Yesteryear</a> by Caro Claire Burke
<a href="https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/marc-j-dunkelman/why-nothing-works/9781541700215/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Why Nothing Works</a> by Marc J. Dunkelman
<a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/217260/ours-was-the-shining-future-by-david-leonhardt/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Ours Was the Shining Future</a> by David Leonhardt
Thoughts? Guest suggestions? Email us at ezrakleinshow@nytimes.com.
You can find transcripts (posted midday) and more episodes of “The Ezra Klein Show” at <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/column/ezra-klein-podcast" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">nytimes.com/ezra-klein-podcast</a>, and you can find Ezra on Twitter @ezraklein. Book recommendations from all our guests are listed at <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/article/ezra-klein-show-book-recs.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://www.nytimes.com/article/ezra-klein-show-book-recs</a>.
This episode of “The Ezra Klein Show” was produced by Rollin Hu, Marie Cascione, Kristin Lin and Marina King. Our senior engineer is Jeff Geld. Our recording engineer is Johnny Simon. Our executive producer is Claire Gordon. The show’s production team also includes Annie Galvin, Michelle Harris, Emma Kehlbeck, Jack McCordick and Jan Kobal. Original music by Pat McCusker. Audience strategy by Shannon Busta. The director of New York Times Shows is Annie-Rose Strasser. And special thanks to Argus HD.
Subscribe today at <a href="http://nytimes.com/podcasts">nytimes.com/podcasts</a> or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher">https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher</a>. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

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