Since the 1970s, Mr. Brown has held a dizzying array of political roles, among them California’s secretary of state and attorney general, Oakland’s mayor (twice), and three ill-fated candidacies for president.

This month, he reflected on the topic of political blood sport during a speech in San Francisco. “I know it pretty well,” he said. “I’ve been doing it a long time. And I enjoy it by the way. It’s not a nice business. But it’s a hell of a lot of fun.”

We asked Chuck McFadden, the author of “Trailblazer: A Biography of Jerry Brown,” to help explain Mr. Brown’s popular appeal via email.

• Why do you think most Californians are pleased with the governor?

Jerry Brown is the son of a governor; he grew up in privileged circumstances; he is, by any measure, a member of the elite. Yet he somehow manages to be a populist. He says things the people want to hear, but retains his idealism — a remarkable combination of traits that makes him very popular.

• In your book, you say only in California could a politician as idiosyncratic as Mr. Brown flourish. What did you mean by that?

For three and a half years, he studied to be a Jesuit priest; after his first two terms as governor, he spent six months in Japan studying Zen; he sprinkles Latin phrases in his speeches and refers to St. Ignatius and Buddhism; he has always been an unabashed intellectual, unusual in a politician. Californians like politicians who are out of the ordinary — witness the elections of movie stars Ronald Reagan and Arnold Schwarzenegger. It’s doubtful someone such as Brown could be elected governor in, say, Iowa. But in California, he will have wrapped up 16 years as governor in 2018. Quirky state — quirky governor.

• Is there an anecdote about him that you especially like?