Why Gavin Newsom could ban legacy admissions

SACRAMENTO, California — Gov. Gavin Newsom could soon be the second governor to ban legacy admissions at private universities — and there are plenty of reasons why he might.

The ambitious Democratic leader has a chance to satisfy progressives who’ve become increasingly critical of offering preference to the children of donors and alumni since the Supreme Court gutted affirmative action. But it’s not just leftists — or even Newsom’s party — who are on board with the populist move. Some California Republicans voted for it too.

And by ending a benefit for the wealthy, Newsom could also counteract attempts to cast him as an elite who is out of touch with the challenges facing most Californians.

“I'm hopeful the governor signs it,” Assemblymember Phil Ting, the San Francisco Democrat proposing the ban, told Playbook. “We continue to have preferential treatment for the wealthiest Americans in our country. It doesn't seem to be very fair.”

The proposed prohibition sitting on Newsom’s desk may be personal for him. His alma mater, Santa Clara University, admits a higher percentage of students with alumni and donor ties than all but two California colleges.

Newsom hasn’t said where he’s leaning on the proposal, but here are five reasons why he might sign it:

1. He doesn’t have to go first.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker signed the country’s fourth legacy admissions ban in August. And though prohibitions in Illinois, Colorado and Virginia only apply to public universities, a ban in Maryland also extends to private schools.

2. It’s bipartisan — to an extent.
Most California Republicans voted against Ting’s legislation or didn’t cast a vote. But the bill did pick up support from Republican Assemblymembers Juan Alanis, Laurie Davies, Diane Dixon and Greg Wallis. Virginia’s ban was signed by another Republican, Gov. Glenn Youngkin.

3. Legacy admissions are unpopular.
The share of Americans who believe legacy status should not be considered in admissions jumped to 75 percent in 2022, according to Pew Research Center polling . And a large majority of Americans don’t benefit from the practice. “I could see why the top 1 percent of people would be against” a ban, Ting said.

4. The effects would be limited.
The public University of California system already swore off legacy admissions in 1998, and its sister California State University system has said it doesn’t use the practice. And only Stanford University, the University of Southern California and Santa Clara University admit significant percentages of students with ties to alumni and donors — more than four times the percentage of any other school.

More than 13 percent of students admitted to each school are legacies, according to the most recent data they had to report to the state under previous legislation.

5. The bill was watered down.
Initially, the legislation would have financially penalized campuses that violated the ban. Now, it would only require that the California Department of Justice post their names online and that violators report more information about the demographics of their student bodies to the state.

Like other individual universities, USC hasn’t taken a position on the bill, but university officials said in a statement that the campus would comply with the law if Newsom signs it.

“All admitted students meet our high academic standards through a contextualized holistic review that values each student's lived experience, considers how they will contribute to the vibrancy of our campus, thrive in our community, benefit from a USC education and fulfill the commitments of our unifying values,” the university said.

The Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities, which represents USC, Stanford and Santa Clara, fought the proposed financial penalties hard — and kept up its opposition even after they were removed. The group objects to the bill’s requirement that violators be forced to report the athletics participation or income of admitted students.

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