Governor Gavin Newsom is becoming a Marin County resident again, part-time at least, while he keeps his Sacramento home in the state capital, but his four kids will be attending Marin County schools.
Have you seen any of those very funny Gavin Newsom impersonations on the Jimmy Kimmel Live! show? The Gavin impersonator is not Saturday Night Live alum Seth Meyers, it’s his younger brother Josh Meyers. But he excels at his caricature of Newsom, a governor who can often veer into self-parody.
Newsom might only add to his caricature with Politico's news that broke Monday night that Newsom is moving his family out of Sacramento County and taking them back to Marin County. For better or worse, the quirks associated with well-heeled Marin County might contribute to the Newsom send-up as some sort of legacy-wealth cassanova with a taste for Pinot Noir, hot tubs, and Fleetwood Mac.
Though in Newsom’s defense, it seems he’s making the move so his kids can enroll in Marin County schools. Politico notes that Newsom’s eldest is heading to high school, and they’d prefer not to transfer the kid when Newsom’s term as governor is up. The Chronicle notes that “Newsom’s four children will stay with extended family in Marin County and enroll in county schools starting this upcoming fall semester,” while Gavin himself is likely to split time between Marin and Sacramento.
Newsom’s spokesperson Izzy Gardon said in a statement to Politico that, “To ensure continuity in their children’s education, the family will split their time between Sacramento and Marin heading into the coming academic year.”
While Newsom was born and mostly raised in San Francisco, his family moved to Marin and he attended Redwood High School in Larkspur. First Partner Jen Siebel Newsom was also born in SF, but moved to Marin County while growing up.
But it might not help the impression that Newsom already has one foot out the door, and may be on to the next thing, that he just did his annual State of the State address in pre-recorded video form, as CalMatters points out. It’s basically just a slickly edited, 29-minute infomercial, seen above, but it fulfills Newsom’s constitutional obligation to deliver the annual address.
And it sees Newsom reiterating themes that build his national profile by hammering conditions in states with Republican governors. He notes that shootings and homicide rates are higher in Republican-led “red states” compared to California.
“All of those facts fly in the face of the California haters who want to tear us down because they know our success is a spotlight on their own failures,” Newsom says in the address.
It is not unprecedented for the Governor of California to not live full-time in Sacramento. Jerry Brown split his time between Oakland and the state capitol while governor, and Arnold Schwarzenegger was a half-time resident of LA’s Brentwood during his term.
But the Marin County move may have extra appeal to Gavin Newsom. After all, he would be within 50 miles of his beloved French Laundry restaurant.
Image: SIMI VALLEY, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 27: California Gov. Gavin Newsom talks to reporters in the spin room following the FOX Business Republican Primary Debate at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library on September 27, 2023 in Simi Valley, California. Seven presidential hopefuls squared off in the second Republican primary debate as former U.S. President Donald Trump, currently facing indictments in four locations, declined again to participate. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
