Caitlyn Jenner has announced that she is running for governor of California

Former Olympic athlete and reality TV star Caitlyn Jenner has announced that she has filed documents to run for governor of California from the Republican Party.

Incumbent Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom is likely to face early elections this year. “Over the past decade, we have seen the Golden State’s glimmer diminish thanks to one — party rule that puts politics before progress and special interests before people,” Jenner, 71, said in a statement.

“I am a recognized champion and the only one who can end Gavin Newsom’s disastrous time as governor.” Jenner also said Newsom’s restrictions on COVID-19 had “trampled” small businesses and caused “an entire generation of kids” to lose a year of school.

Jenner’s colleagues say that, according to their survey, she starts the race with a confident position: her name is known at the national level, and the attention to financial problems, combined with socially liberal views, should help attract both Republicans and Democrats who disagree with Newsom.

Although Jenner is a supporter of the Republican Party and voted for Donald Trump in the 2016 election, the former athlete later stopped supporting him because of the transphobic policies of the new administration. Jenner herself is transgender and came out in 2015.