Proposal for a one-time 5% tax on billionaires in the state is opposed by Silicon Valley tech titans and Gavin Newsom

The backers of a proposal to levy a one-time tax on California billionaires say they’ve gathered enough signatures to place the measure on the ballot in November. The initiative has become one of the most politically contentious issues in the state over the past year, spurring tech moguls to spend tens of millions of dollars to oppose it.

The campaign, which is sponsored by the Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West labor union, has collected more than 1.5m signatures, according to a statement from the organization. The measure required 870,000 signatures to qualify for the ballot.

In the last week, Xavier Becerra — who has a 35-year political career spanning Congress, the state Attorney General’s office, and the federal Secretary of Health and Human Services during the Biden presidency — has emerged as a strong contender in the tight race for governor of California. His campaign to replace Gavin Newsom, whose second term is ending and is ineligible for reelection, received an unexpected boost of several points after the frontrunner in the polls, Eric Swalwell, dropped out of the race and resigned his congressional seat amid serious allegations of sexual abuse.

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Lonna Drewes recounts how she inexplicably froze upon arriving at the hotel room where then-Democratic Congressman Eric Swalwell was staying. The model had only had one glass of wine during a dinner in Los Angeles, California, where she was seeking to solidify the support of a strategic ally for her burgeoning political career. She believes Swalwell slipped a substance into her drink to rape her without her resisting. The incident occurred in 2018.

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