Just like the hot weather outside, the debate Sept. 17 between the candidates running for California Insurance Commissioner heated up in Santa Monica, especially between the two frontrunners, John Garamendi and Gary Mendoza.
The two went back-and-forth on a number of issues, while Green and Libertarian Party candidates David Sheidlower and Dale Ogden, respectively, attempted to let the public know where they stood on the issues.
Garamendi, who according to a recent Field Poll leads his Republican challenger Mendoza by five points, was put on the defensive by Mendoza in relation to his handling of Executive Life.
According to Mendoza campaign consultant Kevin Spillane, “It was a very bad day for John Garamendi. He was unpleasantly surprised when he saw Vince and Sue Watson, who had been victims of the Executive Life debacle that he created, were there at the debate. Mendoza kept the debate focused on Executive Life—issues Garamendi clearly didn’t want to talk about. He (Garamendi) had told reporters beforehand it was one of the most important issues he had worked on and something he spent a great deal of time on. However, he didn’t bring it up in his opening statement of self-proclaimed accomplishments. He’s clearly on the defensive about Executive Life.”
Lee Fink, press liaison for Garamendi, countered that “John was the only candidate to talk about solutions to the problems of health insurance, workers’ compensation and homeowners insurance. He demonstrated once again that he is the only candidate who has the experience and vision to be a great insurance commissioner.”
When asked about the Executive Life topic, Fink responded “We were expecting it. We were talking about the issues and that is what our campaign is about. This campaign is about helping consumers, improving health insurance and protecting insurance rates. If he (Mendoza) doesn’t want to focus on that, that’s going to be our goal know matter what.”
Editor’s note: To see more on the debate and the latest information about the race for commissioner, see the Sept. 30 issue of Insurance Journal West, Page 10.
Topics California
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