Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg Says No Third Term

After a few minutes of pleasantries at the beginning of a city hall press conference on May 25, Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg got down to business: He would not, as had already leaked, be running for a third term.

The 63-year-old mayor added that his decision was a positive and happy one for him.

“There is a season for everything in life and it’s now the season for me to do other things that hopefully will help people,” Steinberg said. “Cause that’s what this is about.”

The announcement could have major implications on the March 2024 primary, where progressive activist Dr. Flojaune Cofer and attorney and political unknown Maggy Krell have announced they’ll run. Others, such as former Sacramento City Council members Steve Hansen and Jeff Harris, have been raising money that could be used for campaigns.

The mayor declined to endorse a successor, saying in response to a question that he knew of “a lot of good, talented people” including some who have announced and some who will.

With his announcement, the mayor set a closing date for his time in office, where he easily won two ecections and offered a generally affable demeanor but where he also had an at-times mixed experience. 

'The time has picked me and it’s picked all of us.'

While in the press conference the mayor touted victories for Sacramento during his watch, such as work on Aggie Square, recruiting the managed-care giant Centene to town, and transforming the former site of Arco Arena into a teaching hospital for California Northstate University, the city has grappled with other issues.

Critically, Sacramento has seen soaring numbers of people experiencing homeless in recent years, in the wake of a 2018 federal court decision that prohibited cities from preventing people from camping on public land if sufficient shelter space isn’t available locally.

Steinberg was also mayor when Sacramento police shot and killed Stephon Clark in March 2018, which spurred public protests. The mayor referenced Clark’s death, among other challenges during his tenure. He also noted that public servants don’t get to pick the times they serve in.

“The time has picked me and it’s picked all of us,” Steinberg said.

A variety of public officials had kind words to say about the mayor in remarks distributed by the city, including Sacramento City Manager Howard Chan, who said the right leaders are elected for the right times.

'I’ve got 18 months to go. And we've got a lot of work to do.'

“When the City needed more funding for public safety and community services, it was the Mayor who had the vision to develop and champion the second Measure U sales tax,” Chan said. “When we were faced with a global pandemic, it was the Mayor who developed the financial framework to quickly disperse over $200 million in federal resources to our neighborhoods and businesses.”

A representative for Cofer’s campaign provided a statement saying that while she and the mayor haven’t agreed on all issues, she had “always appreciated his willingness to keep the lines of communication open and his obvious love for this city.”

What Steinberg’s next pursuit will be, he didn’t specify at his press conference, though he has options. Prior to being elected mayor in 2016, Steinberg served as president pro tempore in the California State Senate and raised money for a time for a run for lieutenant governor.

In recent months. Steinberg has reportedly sought a judicial appointment through Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office, with the mayor reminding reporters Thursday that he’d also been up for consideration for California Attorney General. Steinberg’s listing on the California State Bar Association website shows he remains an active member of the bar.

“I think anything’s possible, but I think whatever it is, it’ll be in service to our community and our state and society,” Steinberg said.

The mayor also reminded people, to laughter, that his term wasn’t complete just yet.

“This is not an epitaph,” Steinberg said. “I’ve got 18 months to go. And we've got a lot of work to do.”