Amid calls for Joe Biden to step down following his catastrophic performance at the presidential debate, one man has hovered around the edges reminding the Democrats that he is there should the 81-year-old commander in chief fail.

With his Hollywood good looks and perfect wife and family he seems like a president straight out of central casting.

But behind the slick (literally) exterior is a seasoned operator accused of ruining California with woke laws, rising crime and who has a very uncomfortable link to the Trumps.

Meet Gavin Newsom, 56, who is in the middle of his second and final term as California’s governor.

With no re-election campaign to run, Newsom set his sights on nationwide recognition by appearing on TV clashing over social issues with Republicans like Ron DeSantis – and front and centre at the presidential debate last night, where he adamantly defended Biden’s catastrophic performance.

Newsom was basking in the spotlight as he was surrounded by reporters. In one interview, Newsom attacked Trump and said he was a ‘serial liar who is responsible for rape victims being forced to carry their abuser’s child to term’.

He actually has a very intimate connection to the Trump family, as his ex-wife, FOX anchor Kimberly Guilfoyle, is engaged to the former President’s son, Donald Trump Jr.

Newsom and Guilfoyle were married for five years before their divorce in 2006, while he was the mayor of San Francisco. He has since remarried and had four children with his now-wife Jennifer Siebel Newsom.

Since he took over as California’s governor in 2019, Newsom has introduced new laws to make the state a sanctuary for women seeking abortions post Roe v Wade as well as a literal green haven by banning the sale of new fossil-fuel cars by 2035.

He also introduced policies beneficial to illegal immigrants, like offering undocumented immigrants the opportunity to get health insurance.

Newsom has been harshly criticised for his leadership of the state, with Republicans pointing to the state’s $46.8billion budget deficit, high tax rates, large homeless population and the proliferation of property crimes in its largest cities.

While Newsom said that claims that he could replace Biden, 81, were ‘farcical,’ his appearance has sparked claims that the governor was placed in front of cameras at the debate as part of a plan to take over as the candidate for the Democrats.