Brown meets GOP rival in only gubernatorial debate

Gov. Jerry Brown and his Republican challenger are meeting for what is likely to be the only gubernatorial debate this election season.

Thursday night’s debate comes as a new Field Poll finds Brown has a lead of 16 percentage points among likely voters over Neel Kashkari, a former U.S. Treasury official who helped lead the national bank bailout.

The debate is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. You can watch it online via calchannel.com and Spanish viewers can watch it at Telemundo52.com.

Kashkari has made poverty and inequality centerpieces of his campaign, and both topics promise to figure prominently during the debate in a television studio across from the Capitol.

Education reform, the $68 billion high-speed rail project and the state’s business climate are other possible subjects of disagreement.

Brown is likely to call attention to Kashkari’s lead role in overseeing the Troubled Asset Relief Program, which bailed out national banks and investment houses.