Kashkari does not rule out additional contributions to his campaign

He’s already invested $2 million of his own cash in a bid for the governor’s office, and on Sunday, GOP candidate Neel Kashkari said he wouldn’t rule out future campaign infusions from his own bank account.

“Nothing is determined yet,” he told The Los Angeles Times following an appearance at an Asian American business round table in the City of Industry.

The former U.S. Treasury official and investment banker has previously listed is his self-worth at less than $5 million.

Initially, Kashkari said he would not use his own funds in a gubernatorial campaign. His thinking changed, however, as the June 3 primary vote began to close in. Kashkari must finish second if he hopes to challenge incumbent Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown in the fall.

“When I originally said I didn’t think I’d put my own money in, it was because I didn’t think I’d have enough money to make a difference against Jerry Brown,” Kashkari said. “… But I realized that as we’re pursuing this primary, and the vast majority of voters had no idea who any of the Republican candidates are … I felt a sense of obligation to all the people who supported me.”

So far, donors have contributed $2 million to his campaign, and some high-profile Republicans have also endorsed his bid.

“I felt like I owed it to them to do everything in my power to try to reach voters with our very positive message then help shape the future of the Republican Party,” Kashkari said.

On Saturday, his main GOP rival, Assemblyman Tim Donnelly, suggested the donations were a sign of weakness.

“I think it reeks of desperation,” Donnelly told The Times after he spoke to hundreds of voters at the Unite Inland Empire Conservative Conference in Riverside.

Kashkari discussed his campaign contributions just before appearing at a town hall meeting that drew more than 100 people to a hotel ballroom.

The town hall session, which lasted more than an hour, was a first for his campaign. Senate Minority Leader Bob Huff and his wife Mei Mei, who is politically influential in the San Gabriel Valley, organized the event.

During Sunday’s appearances, Kashkari highlighted his background – his parents immigrated to Ohio from India a half century ago and made sure he got a good education. He said he wanted to ensure that every child in California got a similarly good education.

“Because I got a good education, all the doors of our great country were open to me,” he said.

Kashkari also emphasized his opposition to affirmative action, a politically resonant issue for some Asian American voters.

Earlier this year, Asian Americans, who tend to lean Democratic, banded together with Republicans to oppose efforts to resurrect affirmative action at California’s public universities. The affirmative action proposal, which Asian Americans feared might cost their children admission to state universities , was unsuccessful.

“I have a plan for higher education that makes sure we’ll never bring affirmative action back to our schools,” he said. “We have to stop that. There’s no room for affirmative action. How we fix this is making sure all kids get a good k-12 education. If they get a good k-12 education, then every student has a fair chance to get into the best universities.”