Michael Derrick Tubbs (born August 2, 1990, Stockton, California) is an American politician, anti-poverty advocate, author, and Democratic public official who served as the 79th Mayor of Stockton, California from 2017 to 2021 — the first Black mayor and the youngest mayor of any major American city in modern history when elected at age 26. Raised by a single mother with a father in prison, Tubbs graduated from Stanford and interned in the Obama White House before winning election as the first Black mayor of Stockton in 2016. He currently serves as Special Adviser to Governor Gavin Newsom for Economic Mobility and Opportunity and is the founder of End Poverty in California (EPIC) and Mayors for a Guaranteed Income (MGI). He is running for Lieutenant Governor of California in the June 2, 2026 primary.
Tubbs was born in south Stockton and grew up in poverty. His mother, Racole Dixon, was a teenager at the time of his birth, and his father is serving a third-strike life sentence in prison for kidnapping, drug possession, and robbery. He was raised by three women — his mother, aunt, and grandmother — whose resilience and faith shaped his sense of purpose. In 2007, while a student at Franklin High School in Stockton, he won an essay contest sponsored by Alice Walker. He received a B.S. and an M.S. in policy, leadership, and organization studies from Stanford University, where he interned in the Obama White House as an undergraduate. He later served as a fellow at the Stanford Design School, the Emerson Collective, the Harvard Institute of Politics, and the MIT Media Lab. He is the author of The Deeper The Roots: A Memoir of Hope and Home (Flatiron Books, 2021), selected as an Oprah Book Club pick.
Tubbs was elected to the Stockton City Council at age 21 in 2012 and won the mayoralty in 2016, defeating incumbent Anthony Silva. As mayor, he raised over $20 million to create the Stockton Scholars universal scholarship and mentorship program, and piloted the Stockton Economic Empowerment Demonstration (SEED) — the first mayor-led guaranteed income pilot in the United States, providing $500 per month to 125 randomly selected Stockton residents for 24 months. Under his leadership, Stockton was named an “All-America City” in both 2017 and 2018. He lost re-election in November 2020 to Republican Kevin Lincoln in a race widely attributed to organized local opposition to his progressive policies and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on city operations. After leaving office, Governor Newsom appointed him Special Adviser for Economic Mobility and Opportunity. He has $671,550 in his campaign war chest as of late April 2026.
Endorsements
SEIU California State Council (750,000 workers), Working Families Party, California YIMBY, U.S. Rep. Robert Garcia, U.S. Rep. Sam Liccardo, U.S. Rep. Lateefah Simon, former U.S. Senator Laphonza Butler, and an independent expenditure committee funded by Snap CEO Evan Spiegel and philanthropist Patty Quillin (married to Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings). A full list is available on his endorsements page.
Reputation/Scandals/Successes
Core Strengths and Positive Reputation
- One of the Most Compelling Personal Biographies in California Politics: Tubbs’ journey — from growing up in poverty in South Stockton, with a mother who gave birth to him when she was 16 and a father who has been incarcerated his entire life, to Stanford University and then City Hall — is a genuinely extraordinary American story that has attracted national attention from President Obama, Oprah Winfrey, and a wide range of media and civic institutions. His memoir, his national awards from the JFK Library and The King Center, and his Forbes and Fortune recognition are not performative — they reflect a sustained record of achievement under difficult circumstances that gives him an authenticity and moral authority that few political candidates of any party possess.
- National Pioneer on Guaranteed Income: Tubbs launched SEED — the first mayor-led guaranteed income pilot in American history — in Stockton, generating rigorous academic research that has been cited nationally in debates over poverty, economic mobility, and the future of work. The program has directly influenced over 100 similar pilots in cities across the United States through Mayors for a Guaranteed Income, which he founded. This track record of translating a policy idea into a replicable national movement is a genuine governing accomplishment that no other Lieutenant Governor candidate in this race can match.
- Higher Education Platform Matched to the Office: Tubbs’ proposal to use the Lieutenant Governor’s seats on the UC Regents, CSU Trustees, and Community College Board of Governors to push for tuition freezes, free community college, expanded guaranteed income programs for students, and deeper dual enrollment partnerships reflects a realistic understanding of the levers the office actually controls — consistent with his direct experience running large-scale, publicly funded programs at the city level.
- Silicon Valley and Philanthropic Financial Backing: Tubbs is being backed by an independent expenditure committee funded by Snap CEO Evan Spiegel and philanthropist Patty Quillin, who is married to Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings — giving him access to significant independent spending capacity that can amplify his message beyond his $671,550 campaign war chest. Combined with SEIU California’s 750,000-member organizing infrastructure, he has both grassroots and elite financial support.
- Cross-Sectoral Network and National Profile: Tubbs’ fellowships at Harvard, MIT, Stanford, and USC, his Newsom administration role, his book, and his decade of national media coverage give him a public profile and an institutional network — spanning philanthropy, technology, academia, and Democratic politics — that most candidates for a down-ballot state office simply do not have. This network is particularly valuable for an office whose primary power is the bully pulpit.
Criticisms and Vulnerabilities
- Lost Re-election in Stockton in 2020: Tubbs was defeated for re-election as Stockton mayor in November 2020 by Republican Kevin Lincoln — a loss that has followed him into the statewide race and which opponents use to question his local governance record and electoral viability in larger electorates. His 2020 ouster in Stockton is a potential vulnerability opponents and skeptical voters may highlight to question his local governance record and electability in larger electorates. Supporters argue the loss reflected organized conservative opposition and COVID-era disruptions rather than a verdict on his policy record; critics note that a mayor of a medium-sized city lost to a lesser-known Republican challenger in a Democratic-leaning state.
- Trailing in Polls and Fundraising Behind Fiona Ma and Josh Fryday: Among the six leading candidates, state Treasurer Fiona Ma and California Chief Service Officer Josh Fryday have multimillion-dollar war chests and institutional backing from current state officeholders. Tubbs’ $671,550 war chest, while meaningful, trails the frontrunners significantly. In a low-turnout, low-information June primary for a down-ballot office, paid media and voter contact capacity — which money buys — is often decisive. Converting his national profile and progressive grassroots support into the localized voter contact needed to place top-two in a crowded primary is his central electoral challenge.
- Limited Experience in State Government and Sacramento Policy Process: The 2026 campaign offers something of a soft landing spot for Tubbs as it will give him experience running a statewide campaign for an office that gets little public attention and is mostly ceremonial. Beyond his Newsom advisory role, Tubbs has no experience in the Sacramento legislative process, state budget negotiations, or the UC/CSU/CCC board governance he is running to participate in. Critics — including some education policy observers — have noted that effective advocacy on those boards requires deep familiarity with higher education finance and academic governance that his background in city government and anti-poverty advocacy does not directly provide.
- Silicon Valley Donor Backing Complicates Progressive Narrative: The independent expenditure committee funded by Snap CEO Evan Spiegel and Netflix-affiliated philanthropist Patty Quillin introduces a tension in Tubbs’ messaging as a champion of the poor and working class. Progressive critics have noted that alignment with Silicon Valley billionaires — some of whom have supported charter schools, opposed certain labor regulations, and backed centrist Democratic causes — sits uncomfortably with his anti-poverty and labor-aligned platform, even when the individual donors may share his stated goals.
Campaign Contributors
Tubbs has $671,550 in his campaign war chest as of late April 2026, placing him third among the leading candidates. He is also supported by an independent expenditure committee funded by Snap CEO Evan Spiegel and philanthropist Patty Quillin. Major direct contributors include labor unions and individual donors. Full contributor details are available at Transparency USA.
Media Coverage
CalMatters Voter Guide – Lieutenant Governor
LAist: Lieutenant Governor — Who’s Running and Why It Matters
Press Democrat: California Lieutenant Governor Race Tests Power of the State’s No. 2 Job
KPBS: 2026 Primary Election — Lieutenant Governor Race Explainer
AP: Former Mayor Known for Guaranteed Income Program Runs for California Office
