SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The University of Southern California canceled a gubernatorial debate planned for Tuesday after candidates of color who would have been excluded accused the school of discrimination.
Republicans Steve Hilton and Chad Bianco, and Democrats Tom Steyer, Katie Porter, Eric Swalwell and Matt Mahan, who are all white, were slated to participate in the debate hosted by the University of Southern California's Dornsife Center for the Political Future and KABC-TV. But four established Democratic candidates of color, Antonio Villaraigosa, Xavier Becerra, Betty Yee and Tony Thurmond, didn't meet the criteria to participate.
No clear front-runner has emerged in the crowded race ahead of the June 2 primary. Ballots will go out in early May.
The university has defended a formula used to select the participants and denied allegations of bias. A public policy professor independently developed the criteria based on candidates’ polling and fundraising, the university said in a statement Friday.
A group of 50 public policy and social science scholars from across the country defended the professor in a letter to the university’s president on Monday.
“We urge USC to stand firm in rejecting all efforts to apply political pressure on its faculty and its overall academic mission,” they wrote.
But the university reversed course Monday night, saying that the debate co-hosts couldn’t agree on a solution.
The "data-driven candidate viability formula is based on extensive research and enjoys broad academic support,” it said in a statement. “At the same time, we recognize that concerns about the selection criteria for tomorrow’s gubernatorial debate have created a significant distraction from the issues that matter to voters.”
The debate cancellation comes weeks after state Democratic Party Chair Rusty Hicks urged candidates to drop out of the race if their campaigns were no longer viable, citing the possibility that the two leading Republicans could advance to the general election. The all-GOP general election is possible under California’s unusual top-two primary system, which puts all candidates on one ballot and only the top two vote-getters advance to November, regardless of party.
Hicks on Tuesday unveiled the results of a poll commissioned by the party that shows Hilton, Porter, Bianco, Swalwell and Steyer in close competition, and the other candidates trailing behind them. It's consistent with other recent polling.
“These results confirm the possibility, albeit a low one — the possibility of Democrats being locked out of the general election,” Hicks said. “More importantly, it’s yet another reminder of the undeniable fact that all candidates must honestly assess their viable path to win.”
Much of the criticism is targeted at Mahan’s inclusion over other candidates. Mahan, the San Jose mayor, joined the race months after his competitors, but has outraised some of them thanks in part to contributions from ultrawealthy donors in Silicon Valley.
He said he was disappointed the debate was canceled and that the other established candidates should have been allowed to participate.
“The best way to promote democracy is to have every voice included and have forums like this for debate,” he said in an interview.
The controversy escalated Monday when legislative leaders, including chairs of the Black and Latino caucuses, called on organizers to open up the debate to more candidates.
“If USC does not do the right thing, we call on California voters to boycott this debate," they wrote. "If the university will not give voters a fair shot at evaluating everyone running for governor, voters should find other ways to learn about the candidates.”
Villaraigosa, a former Los Angeles mayor who is Latino, celebrated the university's decision to cancel the debate.
“USC made the right call, even if it came late and under pressure,” he said in a statement.
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Associated Press writer Trân Nguyễn contributed.
FILE - California gubernatorial candidate Xavier Becerra speaks at the 2026 California Democratic Party State Convention in San Francisco, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)
FILE - California gubernatorial candidate Betty Yee speaks at the 2026 California Democratic Party State Convention in San Francisco, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)
FILE - California gubernatorial candidate Antonio Villaraigosa speaks at the 2026 California Democratic Party State Convention in San Francisco, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)
PALEMBANG, Indonesia (AP) — Authorities in Indonesia’s South Sumatra, the province with the highest number of wildfire hot spots, turned to spiritual measures on Tuesday as huge blazes in central and western regions scorched wide areas of forests and peatland, creating a choking haze that blanketed some cities in the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country.
The prayer gathering initiative comes as the province faces prolonged dry weather that has heightened the risk of forest and peatland fires.
The latest satellite data from the Environment Ministry showed South Sumatra recorded the highest number of hot spots nationwide with 1,429, followed by West Kalimantan with 1,226 and Central Kalimantan with 811. Forestry Ministry data indicated that nearly 940 square kilometers (363 square miles) were burned in July alone, including over 20 square kilometers (8 square miles) in South Sumatra province.
About 3,000 residents gathered in Palembang, the capital of South Sumatra province, to perform a special Islamic prayer for rain, known as “salat istisqa.” They prayed shoulder to shoulder in the courtyard of the governor’s office as thick smoke shrouded roads, buildings and public facilities, reducing visibility and forcing motorists to drive with their headlights on during the day.
“We have done everything we can and worked closely with all relevant parties,” South Sumatra Gov. Herman Deru said before the prayer. “As people of faith, we are also praying to God to send rain so that life can return to normal.”
He also said the public prayer would complement ongoing firefighting and drought-mitigation measures and serve as a moment for residents to unite in confronting the environmental challenges facing the province.
Emergency services have been battling fires driven by an intensifying El Nino pattern and a prolonged dry season, generating dense smoke that crossed into Malaysia and Brunei, according to the National Disaster Management Agency.
Indonesia is actively intensifying weather-modification operations to help firefighters combat wildfires by inducing rainfall through the dispersal of salt particles into suitable clouds, with 30 aircraft for cloud-seeding and water-bombing operations over Kalimantan, and another 22 helicopters covering Sumatra.
Indonesian police have arrested 72 people suspected of starting some of the forest and peatland fires, while four companies are under investigation for allegedly using fire to clear land at low cost.
Plantation owners and traditional farmers often start fires to clear land for farming, triggering hazardous haze that reduces visibility, disrupts land and air transportation and threatens public health.
Fires are a regular problem during the dry season in Indonesia, and the haze they generate has periodically drawn diplomatic complaints from neighboring countries in Southeast Asia.
Associated Press writer Niniek Karmini in Jakarta, Indonesia, contributed to this report.
A tug boat cruises on Musi River as haze from wildfires blankets the city of Palembang, South Sumatra, Indonesia, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Muhammad Hatta)
A man stands among houses as haze from wildfires blankets the city of Palembang, South Sumatra, Indonesia, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Muhammad Hatta)
Indonesian Muslims perform a prayer requesting for rain following wildfires that burn through peatlands in several regions in Sumatra and Kalimantan Island, in Palembang, South Sumatra, Indonesia, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Muhammad Fajri)
A woman prays during a prayer requesting for rain following wildfires that burn through peatlands in several regions in Sumatra and Kalimantan Island, in Palembang, South Sumatra, Indonesia, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Muhammad Fajri)
In this photo released by Jambi Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD Jambi), a helicopter conducts a water bombing to extinguish wildfire burning through a peatland field in Danau Lamo, Jambi province, Indonesia, on Monday, Aug. 24, 2026. (BPBD Jambi via AP)
Indonesian Muslims attend a prayer requesting for rain following wildfires that burn through peatlands in several regions in Sumatra and Kalimantan Island, in Palembang, South Sumatra, Indonesia, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Muhammad Fajri)
People walk along the Ampera Bridge as haze from wildfires blankets the city of Palembang, in South Sumatra, Indonesia, Sunday, Aug. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Muhammad Fajri)
A man is silhouetted against the haze from wildfires that blankets Musi River in Palembang, South Sumatra, Indonesia, Sunday, Aug. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Muhammad Fajri)
A volunteer sprays water in an attempt to extinguish a wildfire burning through a peatland field in Ogan Ilir, South Sumatra, Indonesia, Monday, Aug. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Muhammad Hatta)
Firefighters attempt to extinguish a wildfire burning through a peatland field in Ogan Ilir, South Sumatra, Indonesia, Monday, Aug. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Muhammad Hatta)
