Gov. Gavin Newsom endorsed George Gascón on Tuesday in his bid to become Los Angeles County district attorney, marking the political reunion of two former Bay Area allies.

As San Francisco’s mayor, Newsom appointed Gascón police chief and later district attorney, so the endorsement is hardly a surprise. But it marks the latest in a raft of high-profile endorsements picked up by Gascón this summer as a national debate about criminal justice reform has energized his attempt to unseat Jackie Lacey as the county’s top prosecutor.

“This November Angelenos will choose who to turn to as calls to re-imagine our dated system of justice grow louder, and I urge them to join me once again in turning to George Gascón,” Newsom said in a statement.

Lacey became Los Angeles’ first Black district attorney in 2012 and is seeking a third-term helming the nation’s busiest district attorney’s office. But she has been the target of near constant criticism from Black Lives Matter organizers and other progressive groups calling for an overhaul of the criminal justice system. Gascón, meanwhile, has positioned himself as a reform candidate and represents a nationwide push to elect more progressive prosecutors.

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