Outside political committees have spent more than $6 million on California's insurance commissioner race, including the June primary, a record for the office, CalMatters reported. The Nov. 3 runoff pits former San Francisco Supervisor Jane Kim against state Sen. Ben Allen, both Democrats.

Why it matters: The commissioner regulates the state's property and casualty insurance market and plays a key role in wildfire recovery, at a time when many Bay Area homeowners are struggling to find coverage.

Where the money is going

According to CalMatters:

  • PACs have spent about $3.2 million to support Allen and more than $1.5 million to oppose Kim. Some funders of those groups include insurance industry companies.
  • In the past week, bail bond insurers gave three $10,000 donations to a committee supporting Allen, and a health insurance PAC gave $48,000.
  • Outside spending supporting Kim tops $958,000, much of it from the California Working Families Party, which Kim led until earlier this year.

Bay Area donors

Donors to groups backing Allen or opposing Kim include Google co-founder Sergey Brin, Meta, a California Business Roundtable PAC, and San Francisco crypto billionaire Chris Larsen, who gave about $3.5 million to three committees, making him the race's largest individual outside contributor, CalMatters reported. Utilities PG&E and Southern California Edison also gave to groups supporting Allen.

Top donors to the Working Families Party PAC include Patty Quillin, wife of Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings.

What the candidates say

"I didn't ask for this and don't welcome it," Allen told CalMatters of the insurance money. Both candidates have pledged not to take insurance industry money, according to CalMatters.

Kim says she hasn't taken insurance industry or corporate PAC money directly in this race. Allen's campaign called the Working Families spending "her own political operation," which Kim's campaign denied, saying the party keeps a "strict firewall."