The pastor of a Pasadena church that sued the state over COVID-related lockdowns during the early part of the pandemic is running to be governor of California.

Ché Ahn, the senior pastor at Harvest Rock Church, is a Republican who voted for President Donald Trump all three times he ran for president.

He might be familiar to voters as the leader of a church that sued the state when parishioners were barred from attending in-person church services during COVID-19 lockdowns a few years ago. A divided U.S. Supreme Court ultimately ordered California to allow indoor worship services for the group of churches that sued, though it also allowed the state to cap the number of people inside to 25% capacity in counties where COVID transmission was widespread and to continue banning singing and chanting indoors.

Ahn said he wants voters to know he’d be a governor for all Californians if elected.

“Once they (voters) get to know me and know my heart, I don’t feel I’m political at all. I’m a pastor. I am for all the people. I want to be governor of everyone, not just the evangelical conservatives,” said Ahn, who leads a network of evangelical churches.

He described himself as a political outsider who felt called by God to help improve conditions in California.

“It wasn’t like I heard a voice calling me to run,” Ahn said. “But I had this incredible burden. I prayed to God.” Within hours of that prayer this past spring, Ahn said, he received an invitation from the White House to attend a National Day of Prayer event, a sign he took as an affirmation from God that he should join the race for governor.

For many hoping to replace termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom, breaking through the already-crowded field of candidates to grab voters’ attention has been a challenge. More than 90 people have declared their candidacy or submitted paperwork with the secretary of state, signaling a potential run — although some have since announced they’re no longer seeking the governorship.

Better-known candidates on the Democratic side include former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, former Assemblymember Ian Calderon, entrepreneur Stephen Cloobeck, former Rep. Katie Porter, environmentalist Tom Steyer, Rep. Eric Swalwell, Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and former state Controller Betty Yee.

Republican candidates include Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and podcaster and former Fox News host Steve Hilton.

Ahn doesn’t have the same level of name recognition as some of the other candidates. But as governor, Ahn said his priorities would include tackling issues of affordability, crime and education.

A former drug addict who briefly experienced homelessness when he was 17, Ahn said, he sees a need to provide a safety net for people facing homelessness — and also treatment programs for drug addicts, alcoholics and people with mental illness.

At the same time, he framed the state’s homelessness crisis as public health and safety issues. He wants more “law and order” in dealing with drug traffickers and people who commit other crimes, such as breaking into cars.

Although Ahn agrees with Trump that anyone in the country illegally should self-deport, the Pasadena resident — who emigrated with his family from South Korea to the U.S. when he was 5 — said he wants to fast-track the legal return of immigrants without a criminal record who have been working in California.

Ahn said he’d appeal to the Trump administration to allow these immigrants to return swiftly and said he’d do whatever he could as governor to prioritize their re-entry into the country.

“If these are people with no criminal record, if they’ve been working here in California and they self-deport, I want to do everything I can to get them in, (front) of the line, to come back and live the American dream,” he said.

“If they are here illegally, they’re out. I’m sorry. They broke the law. I can’t compromise on this,” he said.

In terms of the environment, Ahn said California needs “commonsense” policies like responsible logging and controlled burns to manage forest lands and avoid wildfires like the ones that swept through Los Angeles County in January. Thirteen members of his church lost their homes in the Eaton fire, he said.

“I want to restore California to be glorious again,” he said.