Shocking many but not surprising the pros, Gavin Newsom announced Friday afternoon that he was dropping out of the race for Democratic nominee for Governor of California. The primary election is June 2010. His main opponent for the nomination is former Governor Jerry Brown, now Attorney General. Despite a lot of buzz and forward looking positions on many issues, Newsom apparently just couldn’t raise the big bucks needed — and according to some, didn’t have the stomach for it– or generate improving poll numbers over Brown. With Newsom out, Brown stands alone in the Democratic field, unless Anthony Villaraigosa reconsiders his decision to not run, or Senator Dianne Feinstein improbably leaves the Senate to run.

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom’s withdrawal from the governor’s race followed a meeting with top advisers where he was told that, unless he raised $5 million quickly and appeared to be viable, some of the state’s biggest unions would throw their support behind Attorney General Jerry Brown.

“Basically, he was told what needed to be done and that it was up to him to do it,” said one person who was there.

The meeting drove home the growing truth that even with his support from gays and greens, Newsom had not dialed the megadollars necessary to run a statewide campaign against the better-known Brown, who has turned into a virtual fundraising machine.

The Oct. 23 sit-down with Newsom followed months of internal turmoil and personnel exits within the campaign. But money, not campaign dynamics, was at the root of the session.

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Willie Brown thinks Newsom is OK and we’ll see more of him….and who does he think might join the race?

…sometimes it takes a lot more courage to quit a run than it takes to stay in. Not only is it incredibly difficult personally, it is also deeply embarrassing. It really pulls at your ego.

But it is absolutely necessary for a politician to have that type of courage if he wants a long career. And make no mistake, Newsom still has a future. He is still a tremendous communicator.

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And from the LA Times:

…the campaign foundered amid internal squabbles over how aggressively he should confront Brown and a sense that Newsom was insufficiently focused on some of the most important issues facing the state.

“At the end of the day, he didn’t resonate,” said David Latterman, a San Francisco political consultant who supported Newsom in both his races for mayor but grew critical in recent months. “The issues he was talking about — high-tech, biotech, green this, environment that — are important. But not for a lot of people at a time the state is a disaster zone.”

More in the LA Times: