A former Trump advisor dismissed Caitlyn Jenner's run for California governor as 'a joke,' report says

Several political experts have rejected Caitlyn Jenner's run for governor in California.
According to Politico, one former Trump advisor called her campaign "a joke."
Another source in Los Angeles who works in entertainment and politics said "it's a publicity push."
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Several political experts bashed Caitlyn Jenner's run for governor in California in a new Politico report published Friday.

Sam Nunberg, an advisor to former President Donald Trump's 2016 campaign, disregarded Jenner's candidacy as "a joke."

Mike Madrid, a Republican consultant, told Politico that Jenner's bid "isn't a real campaign" and is just meant to "promote" and "monetize" her.

Some compared her run to that of Trump's five years ago, arguing that Jenner, a former reality TV star and Olympic gold medalist, is a celebrity outsider seeking public office to boost her relevancy.

"When Donald Trump ran for president, he didn't run for president to be president. He ran for president because his TV show's ratings were floundering, and he needed to get a lot of attention for himself to prop up the name," one Democratic strategist told Politico. "Caitlyn Jenner is going to be doing the same thing, right?"

"This is just the next way she can get a lot of attention," another Democratic strategist said.

Another source in Los Angeles who works in both entertainment and politics described Jenner's run as "a publicity push," according to Politico.

Jenner and her team have repeatedly rejected claims that she's "doing this for publicity" and argued that she's running "because she truly believes in what she's doing," according to Sophia Hutchins, Jenner's business manager.

"It drives me crazy when people say that," Hutchins told Politico. "The publicity is already there ... There is no need to run for governor for publicity."

Jenner also defended herself and told Politico she believed "it takes somebody like me" to create change for California.

"I'm not making a joke about this, but I am the poster child for change," she told Politico. "I think that an outsider going to Sacramento is a very good thing."

"And so that's why I'm running. I'm running as an authentic candidate. I'm not hiding anything," she went on to say.

In April, Jenner announced her candidacy to unseat Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom in a likely upcoming recall election. Political experts interviewed by Politico said Jenner has virtually no chance of winning as a Republican running in a heavily blue state with no political experience and a tendency to spark controversy.

Jenner, one of the most famous transgender women in the country who came out publicly in 2015, recently faced criticism from some in the LGBTQ+ community after she said she was against trans girls participating in girls' sports at school.

Jenner also came under fire after it was revealed that she had voted infrequently in past elections.

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