Could a 29-year-old YouTube star become California's next governor?

The scene hinted at modern-day political fable: “Mr Smith Goes to Washington,” launched by a rocket of YouTube fame. A young, ambitious candidate in a suit jacket and jeans stood on a stump in the Echo Park area of Los Angeles, surrounded by 50 people cheering and filming on their iPhones as he laid out his vision for California. Radiating the magnetic appeal that boosted his YouTube channel to 1.7 million followers, Kevin Paffrath dispensed with his usual financial advice to pitch himself as an unlikely recall candidate that voters can take for a gubernatorial test drive. “Shouldn’t all politicians have a one-year trial?” he asked. “Kick them out when they suck, right?” Paffrath spends several hours a day recording videos from his Ventura County home, drives a Tesla plastered with a giant picture of his face and has never held elected office. And, through various quirks of an unlikely recall season, there is a chance this 29-year-old running on a “Stop the bullship” slogan could be California’s next governor. With no prominent Democrats running to replace Governor Gavin Newsom, Paffrath has become the de facto choice for a quotient of party faithful who oppose the recall but still want…
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