Betty Yee

Betty Yee
Official portrait, 2016
32nd Controller of California
In office
January 5, 2015 – January 2, 2023
GovernorJerry Brown
Gavin Newsom
Preceded byJohn Chiang
Succeeded byMalia Cohen
Member of the California State Board of Equalization from the 1st district
In office
December 6, 2004 – January 5, 2015
Preceded byCarole Migden
Succeeded byFiona Ma
Personal details
Born (1957-10-19) October 19, 1957
San Francisco, California, U.S.
PartyDemocratic
EducationUniversity of California, Berkeley (BA)
Golden Gate University (MPA)
Chinese name
Chinese余淑婷
Jyutpingjyu4 suk6 ting4
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinYú Shūtíng
Yue: Cantonese
Jyutpingjyu4 suk6 ting4

Betty Ting Yee (born October 19, 1957)[1] is an American politician who served as California State Controller from 2015 to 2023. A member of the Democratic Party, Yee previously served as a member of the California State Board of Equalization from 2004 to 2015. In 2024, Yee announced her candidacy in the 2026 California gubernatorial election before suspending her campaign in 2026 and endorsing Tom Steyer.

Early life and career

Yee was born on October 19, 1957, in San Francisco,[2] to immigrant parents from Guangdong Province, China. Yee is a graduate of Lowell High School. In 1979, she graduated University of California, Berkeley with a Bachelor of Arts in sociology. In 1981, she graduated from Golden Gate University with a Master of Public Administration.[3]

Yee worked for the legislature and was then governor Gray Davis's chief deputy director for budget.[1] She then became the chief deputy to California State Board of Equalization member Carole Migden.[4] She was appointed to fill the seat when Migden vacated it after being elected to the California State Senate.

Political career

California Board of Equalization

Yee ran for election to remain on the California State Board of Equalization after her appointment[5] and was elected in 2006 from the 1st Board District and was re-elected in 2010. She led the successful effort to force Amazon to collect sales taxes on online purchases.[1][6]

California State Controller

She ran in the 2014 California State Controller election to succeed term-limited Democratic incumbent John Chiang, who was elected California State Treasurer.[7] In the nonpartisan primary, Republican Ashley Swearengin, the Mayor of Fresno, and Yee finished first and second, respectively. John Pérez, the third-place finisher, who was the Democratic Speaker of the California State Assembly, initially called for a recount in 15 counties after official results showed him trailing Yee by just 481 votes out of over 4 million cast; however, he ultimately conceded to Yee.[8][9] Swearengin and Yee competed in the general election, which Yee won by 3,810,304 votes (53.97%) to 3,249,668 (46.03%).

Yee was on the California State Lands Commission. She opposed fracking for oil.[1]

Yee has served as the vice chair of the California Democratic Party since May 2021,[10][11] after defeating party secretary Jenny Bach and Victorville Council member Blanca Gómez.[12][13]

2026 gubernatorial campaign

Yee officially announced her campaign on March 27, 2024, with a video highlighting her upbringing as the daughter of immigrants and experience handling the state budget.[14][15] Yee suspended her campaign on April 20, 2026,[16] and endorsed Tom Steyer.[17]

Electoral history

Yee's first official photo as State Controller

2006

California Board of Equalization 1st District Election, 2006
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Betty Yee (incumbent) 1,508,130 65.0
Republican David Neighbors 677,942 29.2
Libertarian Kennita Watson 68,405 2.9
Peace and Freedom David Campbell 67,697 2.9

2010

California Board of Equalization 1st District Democratic Primary Election, 2010
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Betty Yee (incumbent) 564,903 74.7
Democratic Ted Ford 149,166 19.7
Democratic Alan Montgomery 43,075 5.6
California Board of Equalization 1st District Election, 2010
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Betty Yee (incumbent) 1,617,369 63.1
Republican Kevin Scott 799,327 31.2
Libertarian Kennita Watson 77,929 3.0
Peace and Freedom Sherill Borg 71,183 2.7

2014

California State Controller Primary Election, 2014
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Ashley Swearengin 1,001,473 24.8
Democratic Betty Yee 878,195 21.7
Democratic John Pérez 877,714 21.7
Republican David Evans 850,109 21.0
Green Laura Wells 231,352 5.7
Democratic Tammy Blair 200,532 5.0
California State Controller Election, 2014
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Betty Yee 3,810,304 54.0
Republican Ashley Swearengin 3,249,668 46.0

2018

Nonpartisan blanket primary results[18]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Betty Yee (incumbent) 4,033,208 62.1
Republican Konstantinos Roditis 2,200,942 33.9
Peace and Freedom Mary Lou Finley 261,876 4.0
Total votes 6,496,026 100.0
California State Controller election, 2018[19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Betty Yee (incumbent) 8,013,067 65.45 +11.48
Republican Konstantinos Roditis 4,229,480 34.55 −11.48
Total votes 12,242,547 100.0 N/A
Democratic hold

2021

California Democratic Party Female Vice Chair election, 2021[13]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Betty Yee 1,960 58.97
Democratic Jenny Bach 1,306 39.29
Democratic Blanca Gómez 58 1.74
Total votes 3,324[a] 100.0

2026

2026 California gubernatorial election[20]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Xavier Becerra 2,591,857 27.98
Republican Steve Hilton 2,277,318 24.59
Democratic Tom Steyer 2,110,707 22.79
Republican Chad Bianco 941,708 10.17
Democratic Katie Porter 403,908 4.36
Democratic Matt Mahan 327,537 3.54
Democratic Antonio Villaraigosa 104,107 1.12
Democratic Tony Thurmond 63,762 0.69
Peace and Freedom Ramsey Robinson 51,803 0.56
Democratic Betty Yee (withdrawn) 40,873 0.44
Democratic Eric Swalwell (withdrawn) 28,164 0.30
Republican Tim Nelson 23,712 0.26
Green Butch Ware (write-in) 22,493 0.24
Republican Randeep S. Dhillon 21,937 0.24
Democratic Barack D. Obama Shaw 16,716 0.18
Democratic Carolina Buhler 15,013 0.16
Republican Leo Samuel Zacky 14,708 0.16
Republican Gretha Solórzano 12,563 0.14
Democratic Matthew Chase Levy 11,059 0.12
Libertarian Tom Woodard (withdrawn) 9,328 0.10
Democratic Erin "Zez" Zezulak 9,251 0.10
Democratic Louis A. De Barraicua 8,851 0.10
Democratic Mohammad Arif 8,458 0.09
Republican Leo Naranjo IV 8,099 0.09
No party preference Nancy D. Young 7,012 0.08
Republican James Athans Jr. 6,633 0.07
No party preference Joseph Cabrera 6,196 0.07
Republican David Zickefoose 5,882 0.06
Democratic Satish Rao 5,668 0.06
No party preference Christine R. Sarmiento 5,643 0.06
No party preference Jon Henderson 5,589 0.06
Republican Alicia Olivia Lapp 5,370 0.06
No party preference Amanda Martin 5,234 0.06
No party preference Frederic C. Schultz 5,230 0.06
Republican Rafael M. Hernandez 5,223 0.06
Democratic Scott P. Shields 5,043 0.05
Democratic Derek Grasty 4,994 0.05
Democratic Larry Azevedo 4,675 0.05
No party preference Elaine Culotti 4,483 0.05
Republican Patricia De Luca Basualdo 4,064 0.04
No party preference Mauro Alberto Orozco 4,052 0.04
Democratic Raji Rab 3,606 0.04
Democratic Sophia Edum-a-Sam 3,550 0.04
No party preference Brent Maupin 3,132 0.03
Democratic Akinyemi Agbede 3,037 0.03
No party preference Lewis Herms 2,995 0.03
No party preference Naomi Bar-Lev 2,744 0.03
No party preference Daniel Mercuri 2,667 0.03
Republican Ché Ahn (write-in) 2,419 0.03
Democratic Gary Howard Kidgell 2,415 0.03
Democratic Joel E. Jacob 2,350 0.03
Democratic Thunder Parley 2,320 0.03
No party preference Margaret Trowe 2,286 0.02
No party preference LivingForGod AndCountry DeMott 2,206 0.02
No party preference Reza Safarnejad 1,990 0.02
No party preference Duane Terrence Loynes Jr. 1,905 0.02
No party preference Don J. Grundmann 1,903 0.02
No party preference Anne Komarovsk 1,535 0.02
No party preference Dawit Kellel 1,360 0.01
No party preference Sam Sandak 1,222 0.01
No party preference Max Fomin 842 0.01
No party preference Lukasz Adam Filinski 527 0.01
No party preference Serge Fiankan 488 0.01
No party preference Sean Forbes (write-in) 22 0.00
Democratic Jibri J. Peavy (write-in) 10 0.00
No party preference Dirk Langer (write-in) 8 0.00
Democratic Kalid Meky (write-in) 5 0.00
No party preference Michael J. Dilger (write-in) 1 0.00
Total votes 9,262,468 100.00

Notes

  1. ↑ This total does not include the 45 voters who skipped this contest

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Less-funded controller's race is where the real money is". Los Angeles Times. October 23, 2014. Retrieved November 12, 2014.
  2. ↑ Yee, Betty. "Meet Betty". bettyyee.com. Betty Yee. Retrieved March 20, 2026.
  3. ↑ "Betty Yee For Controller". Los Angeles Sentinel. May 7, 2014. Archived from the original on August 20, 2025.
  4. ↑ VOTER'S GUIDE TO THE NOV. 7 ELECTION / Board of Equalization[link removed], San Francisco Chronicle, October 29, 2006
  5. ↑ "Keep Betty Yee on the State Board of Equalization". Archived from the original on May 23, 2006.
  6. ↑ "Amazon.com Fights California Tax Collectors". SFGate. June 30, 2011. Archived from the original on November 12, 2014. Retrieved November 12, 2014.
  7. ↑ Josh Richman (April 8, 2013). "Political Blotter: Board of Equalization member Betty Yee making a bid for state controller". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved March 9, 2014.
  8. ↑ Megerian, Chris (July 6, 2014). "John Pérez calls for recount in tight race for state controller". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on August 14, 2017. Retrieved July 8, 2014.
  9. ↑ Wildermuth, John. "John Pérez concedes in California controller's race". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on April 24, 2016. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
  10. ↑ Garofoli, Joe (April 24, 2021). "Rusty Hicks re-elected to lead California Democratic Party". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  11. ↑ Porter, Jacque (April 25, 2023). "Former State Controller Betty Yee intends to run for governor in 2026". FOX 40. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  12. ↑ White, Jeremy B. (November 18, 2020). "Controller Yee sparks questions with run for California Democratic Party position". POLITICO. Archived from the original on April 1, 2023. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  13. 1 2 "2021 CADEM Officer Election Preliminary Results" (PDF). California Democratic Party. April 24, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  14. ↑ Luna, Taryn (March 27, 2024). "Betty Yee officially enters the 2026 California governor's race". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on March 28, 2024. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
  15. ↑ Watts, Julie (March 27, 2024). "Former state Controller Betty Yee announces campaign for California governor". Associated Press. Archived from the original on March 28, 2024. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
  16. ↑ "Former state Controller Betty Yee suspends bid for California governor". CBS News. April 20, 2026. Retrieved April 20, 2026.
  17. ↑ Lloyd, Jonathan (April 21, 2026). "Betty Yee announces endorsement for California governor". KNBC.
  18. ↑ "Statement of Vote" (PDF). California Secretary of State. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 25, 2020. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  19. ↑ "Controller - Statewide Results". California Secretary of State. Archived from the original on November 29, 2018. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  20. ↑ "Primary Election * June 2, 2026 - STATEMENT OF VOTE" (PDF). California Secretary of State. July 10, 2026. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 11, 2026. Retrieved July 11, 2026.
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