was chosen in the first round of voting as the party's nominee for the governorship. His nomination was largely orchestrated by the Southern Pacific Railroad, who had worked with Gage since the 1870s, and saw him as supportive of their interests. In the 1898 California gubernatorial election, Gage defeated his Democratic rival, House Representative James G. Maguire by 6.7%. Other minor candidates in the election included Job Harriman of the Socialist Labor Party of America and Prohibitionist J. E. McComas, a former State Senator. Governorship Gage was inaugurated as the 20th Governor of California on January 4, 1899. In his inauguration speech, Gage spoke at length about foreign policy, viewing with favor the recent results of the Spanish–American War and their effect on California's economy. "The peaceful acquisition of the Hawaiian Islands, extending our empire beyond our Pacific shore, should be followed as a political necessity by the annexation of the Philippines," Gage stated. "The center of commerce must move westward. California, favorably situated, will, among other advantages, reap the harvest of trade with these new territories, developing our many varied and growing resources, creating a western merchant marine for the carriage of our imports and exports, and luring to our markets the nations of the world." In one of his first acts, Gage's administration reopened the State Printing Office, which had been closed down by Governor James Budd to cut governmental expenditures. From early on in his administration, Gage was highly partisan, mostly because of frequent accusations from Reform Republicans and Democrats alike who accused Gage as being a pawn for the Southern Pacific. When a newspaper published a political cartoon portraying railroad tycoon Collis Potter Huntington leading the governor around on a leash, Gage was so incensed by the accusation that he ramrodded a censorship bill through the California State Legislature, restricting the press whenever editorial content involved politics or politicians. San Francisco bubonic plague outbreak On January 3, 1900, Gage held a legislative session to discuss ways to improve San Francisco's port in attempt to increase trading with Asia. He also wanted to bring back the State Quarantine Service which had recently been removed. The federal Marine Hospital Service on Angel Island was responsible for the inspection of all incoming ships and preventing all foreign diseases from coming into California. Reintroduction of the State Quarantine Service would provide Gage with more oversight and ability to minimize threats