EDITORIAL: Josh Fryday, California lieutenant governor candidate, answers Bay Area News Group's primary questionnaire

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Ahead of the June primary election, the Bay Area News Group compiled a list of questions to pose to the candidates for lieutenant governor. You can find the full questionnaire below. Questionnaires may have been edited for spelling, grammar, length and clarity.

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Name: Josh FrydayCurrent job title: California chief service officer / governor's cabinet memberDate of birth: February 8, 1981

Political party affiliation: DemocratOther political positions held: Novato mayor / City CouncilCity where you reside: Davis

What are the top three problems you're seeking to solve if elected?

1. Housing shortage

2. Aligning education with workforce needs

3. Protecting California from the Trump administration

Why are you uniquely qualified to solve these problems?

Housing: I grew up with it. My family moved 17 times before I graduated high school because every time a landlord raised the rent, we had to move.

Education: I built the College Corps and the Climate Action Corps from scratch and grew California Volunteers into a service force larger than the Peace Corps. I also ran Golden State Opportunity, connecting millions of working families with the earned income tax credit.

Protecting California: I served as a Navy Judge Advocate General's Corps officer at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where I saw firsthand what happens when the rule of law is abandoned.

What differentiates you from your most serious competitors for this seat?

I am the only military veteran in the race. I am the only candidate married to a public school teacher and the only candidate with children in public schools. I am the only candidate with a serious track record of climate leadership. I am the only candidate who has delivered results at the local, state, national and international levels.

What did Eleni Kounalakis do right as California's lieutenant governor?

Lt. Gov. Kounalakis successfully advocated for adding the Community Colleges Board of Governors to the lieutenant governor's portfolio. That was a significant expansion of the office's reach, and it means the next lieutenant governor will have a vote across all three of California's public higher education systems, not just the Universities of California and California State Universities. This is significant for a state where community colleges serve the largest share of students and are the primary pathway to workforce credentials and four-year degrees for millions of Californians.

In what ways did Eleni Kounalakis fail as California's lieutenant governor?

California's higher education systems still operate too much in silos, and the gap between what our colleges and universities produce and what our economy actually needs has not closed. The lieutenant governor is uniquely positioned to bring together UC, CSU, community colleges, employers and labor to align education with workforce demand in sectors like health care, clean energy and construction. That convening work didn't happen at the scale it should have, and it's something I plan to prioritize.

The lieutenant governor sits on bodies including the California State Lands Commission and the UC Board of Regents, and can influence land-use policy. How would you use those roles to help address California's housing shortage - particularly on state-owned land or university property?

Before I turned 18, I lived in 17 different homes. I was a Pell Grant student at UC Berkeley. I understand the severity and the pain of the housing crisis. I will use those seats to push every campus to inventory its surplus and underutilized land, develop concrete housing plans and move projects forward on a timeline that matches the urgency of this crisis. On the State Lands Commission, I will work to make sure public land decisions prioritize housing and clean energy development rather than letting those parcels sit idle.

California continues to face concerns about business costs and outmigration. What specific policies would you advocate to improve the state's economic competitiveness while still maintaining California's labor and environmental standards?

I will use the State Lands Commission to push for faster, more predictable permitting timelines for renewable energy projects on public land, particularly offshore wind, so that developers can plan and investors can commit with confidence. And I will use the lieutenant governor's international trade platform to position California as the global leader in clean energy investment and innovation. We also have to reimagine and relaunch the California Commission for Economic Development to send a message to businesses that they are welcomed and needed to make our state thrive.

The lieutenant governor serves on the University of California Board of Regents, which helps shape policy for one of the largest public university systems in the world. What reforms would you support to improve affordability, expand access for California students and align higher education with workforce needs?

I will push the Regents to treat housing as core infrastructure and set concrete targets for student and workforce housing units on every campus. I want to strengthen the pipeline between community colleges and UC so transfer students complete degrees at the same rate as students who start as freshmen. I will push UC and CSU to integrate service pathways into financial aid and degree planning so more students can graduate with less debt and real work experience. I also want to see degree and credential programs aligned with actual workforce demand.

Through the State Lands Commission and other boards, the lieutenant governor has influence over coastal policy, offshore energy and conservation. What role should California play in developing offshore wind and other renewable energy projects while protecting coastal ecosystems and communities?

California should be leading the world on offshore wind, and I intend to use the role on the State Lands Commission, Coastal Commission and Ocean Protection Council to accelerate clean energy. I will push for clear, predictable permitting timelines so developers can plan and investors can commit. Through the State Lands Commission, the Coastal Commission and the Ocean Protection Council, I will make sure renewable energy projects are sited and built in ways that protect marine habitats, shoreline access and coastal communities while advancing the 30×30 conservation initiative.

Critics sometimes argue the lieutenant governor's role is largely ceremonial. If elected, what initiatives would you personally lead to make the office more influential in solving California's biggest challenges?

The lieutenant governor has a real platform to shape public debate. The effort I'm most excited to lead is expanding the California Service Corps. As lieutenant governor, I will use my seats on the UC Board of Regents, CSU Board of Trustees and Community Colleges Board of Governors to build formal pipelines from those campuses into service placements, making it a real workforce and education pathway, not just a program. The goal is to make service a core part of the California experience, something every young person in this state can access.

While serving as lieutenant governor and acting as governor when Jerry Brown was in China, Gavin Newsom declared the avocado as California's official state fruit. What's the first thing you're doing as acting governor in the governor's absence?

The first thing I'm doing is calling my mom to tell her I got a promotion. After that, I'm signing whatever housing bill is sitting on the governor's desk.

To the extent you haven't already addressed this, in what ways would you use this office to benefit the Bay Area?

As lieutenant governor, my focus will be on making it possible for people to build a life in the communities they grew up in. That means pushing UC Berkeley, San Francisco State University and every community college in the region to build housing on their own land. It means using the State Lands Commission to unlock public land for housing near jobs and transit. And it means using the bully pulpit to fight for the Bay Area families who are being priced out of the place they call home.

Please tell us anything else we should know about why you're the best candidate for California lieutenant governor.

Every answer I've given in this questionnaire comes back to the same thing: I know what this office can do, and I'm ready to use it. I'm not running because the lieutenant governor's title sounds good or I need a job. I'm running because I've spent my career building things to deliver for people, and I see an office full of tools not yet fully utilized.

Lastly, name your favorite California restaurant.

Masa Sushi in the great city of Novato, where I was mayor. After serving in the Navy in Japan, I appreciate great Japanese food, and Novato delivers great Japanese food.

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This story was originally published May 22, 2026 at 5:43 PM.