Hotel entrepreneur Stephen Cloobeck has a new project: a campaign for governor of California.

In an exclusive interview with the Southern California News Group, Cloobeck, an entrepreneur who has worked across the hotel industry, including timeshare, said he is concerned about how unaffordable California has become. Citing his business background, Cloobeck decided Tuesday, Nov. 5, to join a rapidly growing field of candidates vying to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is term-limited and ineligible to run for re-election in 2026.

Related: These are the candidates for governor of California in 2026

“We need new eyes, someone who understands how to make sure that the leaders of this state have every taxpayer's back, that the government always has their back and, most importantly, that every taxpayer likes a customer is treated. “Every taxpayer or customer receives equal or greater value than the tax dollars they spend,” said Cloobeck.

“There is no difference between the consumer business and those who run a state, but our current leaders have forgotten that.”

Cloobeck describes himself as a fiscally conservative, “socially responsible” Democrat and rejects what he sees as identity politics. California, he said, “needs to move to the right because we can’t go any further to the left.”

For him, that means supporting efforts he believes would make California more affordable. He wants to see “aspirational deadlines” for electric vehicles, not mandates that he says “steal our freedom as Californians.” He has an education action committee, Save Our Schools PAC, which advocates for every child's civil right to a quality education. Home ownership plans, He added that living in apartments rather than individual houses should also be considered.

“I think public-private partnerships are the secret to success for California’s future,” Cloobeck said.

He is critical of Gov. Gavin Newsom, particularly when it comes to crime rates.

“Our current leadership,” Cloobeck said, “doesn’t know how to turn away from the mistakes they’ve made.”

Cloobeck, 63, said he once thought he would become a doctor, perhaps a heart surgeon. But in his final year at Brandeis University in Massachusetts, he changed his mind, he said, and returned to California after graduating. He took accounting courses at Cal State Northridge and evening business courses at UCLA. He began working for mall development companies and eventually founded his own company.

His father was against him starting his own business, he said, but a family friend advised him: “Let the child try.”

He did. Cloobeck built his first shopping center in Burbank. From there he ventured into the hotel industry. Its first major development was the Polo Towers in Las Vegas in the early 1990s, according to its website. In 2007, his company, Diamond Resorts, acquired Sunterra Corps., a deal that industry analysts at the time called “one of the largest acquisitions in the timeshare industry of all time.” In 2016, Cloobeck resigned from Diamond Resorts.

“I am not a professional politician. I am an activist; I’m a businessman,” Cloobeck said.

“But I know politics and politics because I was trained by the best in politics and finance,” he added. “And I’m always used to crossing hallways.”

Although he has not held elected office, Cloobeck has long been associated with politics. In 2004, he was appointed a member of the Nevada Standing Committee on Judicial Ethics and Election Practices. He later served as chairman of Brand USA, a public-private partnership created under the Obama administration to strengthen U.S. tourism worldwide. In media interviews, he has discussed golfing with former Democratic presidents and his ties to politicians, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

Cloobeck said his mentor was the late Nevada Sen. Harry Reid, a Democratic leader in the U.S. Senate who died in 2021. Cloobeck was part of the effort to rename the Las Vegas airport after Reid, whom he has described as a “second father.”

Cloobeck is also close to Rep. Lou Correa, D-Santa Ana, who called the hotel magnate “a very close friend.”

“He’s an interesting person,” Correa said. “The guy is smart. He really knows how to get things done. The question is how he gets that message across to voters.”

Correa compared Cloobeck to former governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Both were successful outside of politics, said Correa. Both men were also bodybuilders.

A Cloobeck campaign was always seemingly in sight.

The question was whether he would compete in California or Nevada.

Cloobeck grew up in Encino and spent his summers in Simi Valley, Sanger and Willits, his biography says. He had offices in Orange County and now resides in Los Angeles County.

But just a few years ago he was living in Nevada, where he served as chairman of the state's athletic commission. He resigned from that post at the end of 2022, saying he could not work with Joe Lombardo, a Republican who was slated to take over as the state's governor, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported at the time.

There were once rumors that he might run for governor in Nevada.

Cloobeck completed his LA home in 2020, he said, but was staying in a hotel during construction.

“That’s how great California is,” Cloobeck said, pointing out that Nevada has no state income tax. In California, however, residents pay tax rates based on their filing status and income.

“I had no intention of coming back here and getting involved in this way,” he continued, referring to his new political journey.

“But since I've been so involved and haven't found anyone else who has the skills to fix broken businesses, legislate and change laws in numerous states, I've been acting as a regulator and an arbitrator.”

“It's kind of 'unicorn-like' to have all these qualities and be successful at these things,” he said.

Cloobeck is a man full of maxims, which he implements with seriousness.

“We are at the end of a dead end. Time to turn around and move forward.”

“I am law and order. For me it is the eighth commandment. We don't steal. “Thou shalt not steal.”

“It’s not $950; it’s zero,” he added, referencing California’s Prop 47, which increased the dollar amount for which property theft would be treated as a felony.

“I just don’t have an opinion; I have solutions – because I did it.”

Cloobeck said he is also detail-oriented and focused on his political philosophy and the work he has already done. And he's an avid cook and entertainer who brags about his recipes for osso buco, spicy pasta and fried chicken. He plays pickleball and appeared on “Undercover Boss,” a reality show that placed executives in lower-level positions in their own companies to interact with their employees.

Cloobeck said he values ​​honesty and, if elected governor, would be open with voters.

But he also values ​​tangible results.

“It’s time to govern with respect, responsibility and results that are meaningful and measurable.”

He believes he can measure his success as governor by the population. He wants the state to grow by another 5 million people, to 44 million. The state Department of Revenue currently estimates that California's population — which has declined at times in recent years — will peak at about 40.2 million in 2044 and begin declining thereafter.

“That is success. That means we’re bringing people back to our state,” Cloobeck said.

He is a longtime Democratic donor and has listed both California and Nevada as his residence for the past two years. He donated to Rep. Adam Schiff's U.S. Senate campaign and to Reps. Katie Porter and Barbara Lee as they also vied for California's open Senate seat.

Other candidates running for governor in 2026 include State Senator Toni Atkins, Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis, State Superintendent of Public Education Tony Thurmond, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and former State Comptroller Betty Yee. All are Democrats.