SACRAMENTO, Calif., Oct. 3 (Our California Times) — California governor candidates Xavier Becerra and Steve Hilton clashed over immigration in their sole televised debate as county election officials prepared to send ballots to voters. The exchange focused on how immigrants are treated and who bears responsibility for safeguards for children arriving without a parent.
The hourlong matchup aired on CNN and was the contest’s only televised debate, the Associated Press reported. The Los Angeles Times reported that the candidates met Wednesday, Oct. 1, on a soundstage in Burbank.
When does voting begin?
County election officials were about to mail ballots to California’s 23.2 million registered voters, the Los Angeles Times reported. The Associated Press said ballots were expected to begin arriving in the days after the debate, ahead of the Nov. 3 general election.
The debate therefore came at the start of the mail-voting period, rather than just before election day. California voters are choosing their next governor.
A September poll by the University of California, Berkeley, Institute of Governmental Studies showed Becerra leading, according to the Associated Press’s debate preview. That survey was a snapshot of voter preferences, not an election result.
What was the immigration dispute?
Becerra accused Hilton of applying a different standard to immigrants based on their appearance.
“You seem to welcome immigrants who look like you, but deport immigrants who look like me,” Becerra said.
Hilton called the accusation “disgraceful.” He said he wanted “to lower the temperature on this whole question.”
The exchange put the candidates’ views on the treatment of immigrant communities at the center of the debate. Becerra’s accusation and Hilton’s response were their own characterizations of the dispute.
Why did unaccompanied children come up?
Hilton accused Becerra of dismantling sponsor vetting for unaccompanied immigrant children. Becerra disputed Hilton’s account.
Unaccompanied children are children who arrive without a parent or guardian. The sponsor-vetting dispute concerned checks on the people who would take responsibility for them. Hilton’s allegation and Becerra’s denial did not resolve what changes had been made or their effects.
What did the candidates say about homelessness?
The candidates also addressed homeless encampments, the groups of tents or other temporary shelters where people live.
“We will make sure the encampments are cleared,” Becerra said.
Hilton described homelessness as a failure that reflected badly on California: “This absolute scandal shames our state.”
