Capitol Journal: Sacramento’s revolving door may throw a Legislature veteran into the mayor’s seat

In California’s capital city, it’s in with the old and out with the new. That’s not a typo.

Darrell Steinberg, a career politician who held one of the three most powerful posts in state government, announced Wednesday that he would run next year for the relatively low-level job of Sacramento mayor. He’s way overqualified.

It’s a step down for Democrat Steinberg, 56, former leader of the state Senate. But it’s a step up for this modest-size city, California’s sixth-largest.

Kevin Johnson, a former NBA all-star point guard with the Phoenix Suns and a relative newcomer to politics, announced last week that he would not run for a third term as mayor. That surprised no one.

KJ, as he is known in sports and politics, has been a terrific mayor — the right mayor for the right time.

The charismatic native son led the successful fight to save the NBA Sacramento Kings from aggressive poachers in Anaheim and Seattle. He sold the City Council on a financing plan for a $500-million downtown basketball arena/entertainment center that is revitalizing the city’s core, once arguably among the ugliest in America.

But Johnson, 49, has been a troubled man, embroiled in a series of sex-abuse scandals. Nothing criminal that authorities have proved, but still creepy. He denies all, but his once-promising political career seems kaput. He even had been written about — including by me — as a potential contender for governor. We’ve witnessed an unfortunate wasting of talent.

It started 20 years ago in Phoenix with the alleged molesting of a 16-year-old house guest. She accused him to police and he denied it but paid her a $230,000 settlement to keep quiet.

Voters knew the story, reported by the Sacramento Bee, when Johnson first ran for mayor. But the sordid tale resurfaced like a volcano recently when the sports website Deadspin released a video of the tiny teen being interviewed by a police detective, describing the alleged fondling in detail.

If that were all, Johnson might have survived. But there was a similar alleged incident before he ran for mayor at a Sacramento charter high school he helped found. And recently, a former City Hall worker accused the mayor of groping. Her claim was dismissed, but lawyers — in a memo obtained by the Bee — cautioned Johnson to “refrain from hugging or touching anyone.”

That sort of thing has disappointed KJ’s fans and undermined him politically.

The married mayor says those accusations had nothing to do with his not running for reelection. But that’s very hard to believe.

“It’s a shame this is part of his legacy when he has done so much for the city,” says Steve Maviglio, his political spokesman. Yes, it is.

Maviglio says Johnson has been highly unlikely to run for reelection ever since voters last year turned down his proposal to upgrade the job into a “strong mayor.”

Sacramento is one of the few major municipalities in which the city manager, appointed by the council, has more administrative authority than the mayor. A strong mayor can sign or veto ordinances. Not Sacramento’s. This mayor can appoint council committees and set agendas. But otherwise he has the clout of only a council member and cheerleader.

Steinberg says that doesn’t bother him. He’s used to dealing with complex checks and balances: two legislative houses, a powerful governor and political parties.

“I’m convinced a truly strong mayor can succeed under any system,” he told me. Steinberg should know. He served on the Sacramento City Council before being elected to the Assembly and later the Senate.

Steinberg acknowledges that “I’m not exactly climbing the political ladder here.”

A lawyer, he was tempted to run for state attorney general in 2018. But Atty. Gen. Kamala D. Harris is the front-runner in a U.S. Senate race and if she wins next year, Gov. Jerry Brown would name her replacement. It probably wouldn’t be Steinberg, whom Brown recently passed over for a state Supreme Court appointment.

So Steinberg decided to return to Sacramento City Hall. Politics “is in my blood,” he says. “I like people. I get energy out of the interaction.”

“The art of good politics and good leadership,” he told a large crowd of local VIPs at his candidacy announcement, “is vision combined with an insistence that we actually get things done.”

A policy wonk, Steinberg got a lot done in the Legislature. He was effective, upbeat, pleasant and ethical — almost a Boy Scout.

He got lots of money for mental health treatment, incentives for developing downtown areas near transit hubs, expansion of vocational education and preschool for poor kids.

And he left the Capitol with $1.4 million in campaign contributions. Most of it can be used in the mayor’s race. He should be a shoo-in.

This continues a trend, under legislative term limits, of state politicians returning home to run for local office. Roughly half the Los Angeles City Council members are former state legislators.

Brown was elected Oakland mayor after he had been governor. There’s a big political revolving door out there.

Steinberg’s political career may still stretch beyond Sacramento. Johnson’s won’t, sadly.

george.skelton@latimes.com
Twitter: @LATimesSkelton