California, once the deep-blue jewel in the Democratic crown, is turning purple.

Almost 40 percent of Californians voted for Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election.

It's a fact that stings Ethan Agarwal, a tech entrepreneur and self-proclaimed Clinton Democrat, but it is also the foundation for his campaign to replace Gavin Newsom.

'The Democrats nationally feel alienated by the direction of the Democratic Party,' Agarwal says.

He highlights the obsession with progressive policies like transgender rights and argues that the number one priority should be the economy.

The Silicon Valley venture capitalist calls himself a 'lost Democrat' and believes that there are legions of California voters who see the likes of Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and think: that's not my party.

He has raised over $100 million across multiple start-ups, including an audio fitness app and a fintech platform.

Now he plans to raise $30 million ahead of the June primary - in a crowded field where he remains a rank outsider.

President Donald Trump followed by First Lady Melania Trump, shakes hands with California Governor Gavin Newsom upon arrival at Los Angeles International Airport, California, on January 24, 2025, to visit the region devastated by the Palisades and Eaton fires

Among his greatest attributes, he says, is a Canadian passport and a background free from the national political ties that are hamstringing California.

'I wasn't born in America. I was born in Canada. So I can't run for president,' he says.

Agarwal is no fan of Newsom, who he says has used the governorship as a pulpit from which to launch a presidential bid.

'Newsom has wanted to run for president his whole life. And the easiest way to not piss people off is to not actually do anything,' he says, arguing that 'big swings' are needed 'in order to fix this place.'

Agarwal, 40, is a Wharton finance graduate who cut his teeth at Lehman Brothers and understands the economy perhaps more than some of his rivals.

Ethan Agarwal, 40, is running for California governor

It's the issue that handed Trump the White House as Americans battled sky-high inflation at the grocery store.

In the run-up to the election, Agarwal was struck by a commercial the now-president was running: 'Kamala is for they/them, President Trump is for you.'