The debate, broadcast on CNN, was one of their last chances to pitch themselves to voters and stand out from the pack in their primary election bids to succeed Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, who terms out in January. Mail voting is already underway, and voters have until June 2 to cast their ballots. The top-two vote getters will advance to the general election in November, regardless of party.

Though California hasn’t had a Republican governor in more than a decade, the specter hangs over the race as the field is still crowded with less than a month to go.

Candidates who took part in the debate include Democrats Xavier Becerra, a former health secretary for the Biden administration; Katie Porter, a former congresswoman; Tom Steyer, a billionaire climate activist; Matt Mahan, the mayor of San Jose; and Antonio Villaraigosa, the former mayor of Los Angeles; as well as Republicans Steve Hilton, a conservative commentator; and Chad Bianco, the Riverside County sheriff.

Here’s how they responded on some of the key issues:

Universal healthcare

The candidates sparred over whether they’d eliminate private health insurance in favor of a state-run system, an idea that has failed repeatedly in Sacramento.

Porter, who backs a government-run healthcare system, pressed Becerra on his stance since he’s wavered on the issue recently.

“Do you support CalCare — California having its own state-run, single-payer system, yes or no?” Porter asked.

Becerra gave a vague answer.

“The most important thing about having a Medicare for All plan is that it includes everyone,” he said. “What we have to do is get to the point where we are covering everyone with something like Medicare for All.”

Mahan, who opposes a state-run system, later chimed in and said Becerra “was unable to clearly answer the most important question on healthcare.”

Becerra contested: “I did answer that question.”

Steyer joined Porter in saying he’d support it, while Bianco, Hilton, and Villaraigosa said it wasn’t practical or would cost too much.

When the debate turned to healthcare access for immigrants, the candidates were divided.

Steyer, Porter and Becerra said they supported state-funded healthcare coverage for low-income immigrants without legal status, which Newsom passed then pared back. Bianco called the policy “ridiculous.”

Immigration

Other arguments about immigration fell largely along party lines.

The Democrats sharply rebuked the Trump administration’s immigration raids.

Steyer said the state should prosecute federal agents and immigration enforcement leaders who racially profile or use violence against Californians. Mahan said business owners in San Jose have lost customers because many immigrants are afraid to leave their house.

But Bianco said he supported Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions, saying agents were enforcing the law and working to deport people he referred to as “criminals” in the country illegally.

Hilton, who’s from England, pointed out that he was the only immigrant on stage. The candidates shouldn’t conflate legal and illegal immigration, he said.

“Although it is the federal government’s responsibility to determine and implement immigration policy, I think it’s important that all the laws are peacefully enforced,” Hilton said. “As governor, I would make sure that we work with the federal government to enforce our laws.”

President Donald Trump

The Democrats each emphasized they would fight Trump on immigration policy in particular.

Neither Hilton, whom Trump has endorsed, nor Bianco, invoked him much except to say that Democrats unfairly blame him for the state’s woes.

Becerra mentioned Trump the most, noting he sued the administration many times while serving as state attorney general from 2017 to 2021, when he was appointed health secretary under then-President Joe Biden.

“I’m going to repeat Donald Trump as often as I have because he’s the menace,” Becerra declared.

When Villaraigosa pressed Hilton to acknowledge Trump lost the 2020 presidential election, Hilton refused to answer.

“Endlessly going on about Donald Trump doesn’t serve the needs of the struggling families and small businesses,” Hilton said.

Mahan sought to find middle ground. He said Becerra was wrong to blame high gas prices solely on Trump, but also noted that San Jose has sued the Trump administration over immigration policy. He said it was disqualifying for the Republican candidates to support Trump’s “cruel and ineffective policies.”

Porter, meanwhile, put it simply: “Donald Trump sucks.”

Gas tax and proposed billionaires tax

Steyer was the only candidate on stage to say he’d vote for a proposed billionaires tax expected to appear before voters in November. The one-time tax proposal aims to backfill funding cuts signed into law by Trump that reduced healthcare access for low-income people.

Porter also supports some increased taxes on California’s ultrawealthy but called the proposed tax a temporary fix to a long-term problem.

Meanwhile Mahan said he would suspend the gas tax because it unfairly burdens working families.

Hilton would make people’s first $100,000 free of income tax.

Mahan and Steyer said they’d tax artificial intelligence companies and use the money to support workers, for example through workforce development training.

“The answer is to tax these companies, not to regulate them to the point that they simply go to other places,” Mahan said.

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The party faithful, many of whom sported ‘Trump 2028’ ball caps and paid more than $1,000 in hotel and flights to gather in sunny San Diego, split their votes relatively evenly between Steve Hilton, a businessman and former Fox News host who received the president’s endorsement, and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco. 

The final tally was 49% for Bianco and 44% for Hilton, both shy of the necessary 60% threshold to earn the party’s endorsement.

Hilton, a British-American who is leading all candidates in polling, entered the weekend as a relative party outsider. He called blocking Bianco’s endorsement “a major success” and said he remained “very confident” that he would secure one of the top two spots in California’s June 2 primary.

“Chad Bianco came into this convention assuming he’d got the whole thing in the bag,” Hilton said. “I think we made great progress this weekend to make it roughly even.”

The sheriff, who for months courted delegates and party insiders for the endorsement, was adamant that the final tally didn’t accurately reflect how much party support he has.

Hilton, one of the race’s top fundraisers, has raised more than $6.6 million so far, exceeding Bianco’s haul by more than $2 million.

“This changes nothing about our campaign,” Bianco said after the vote Sunday. Despite failing to garner even a majority of the votes, he also insisted, “I have the supermajority of the support from this room, way more than what that total indicated.”

“Endorsements are silly,” he added, before also acknowledging that an endorsement from the party “would have been nice.” 

Bianco made headlines last month for seizing hundreds of thousands of ballots cast in the special election for Proposition 50, the Democrats’ plan to redraw congressional districts, which voters approved. CalMatters was one of several news organizations that went to court to unseal the warrants that granted his seizure of ballots.

Uncertainty about GOP future

There was no denying that Republicans nationally could face brutal losses in the upcoming midterm elections, although the ocean breeze, harbor views and sunny mid-60s weather might have taken the edge off. Even some of the party’s conservative stalwarts acknowledged the uphill battle.

Speaking on a congressional panel moderated by former White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer, Rep. Darrell Issa acknowledged that Republicans “may not hold the House in the midterms.” 

Issa, who chose to retire rather than seek reelection after Democrats significantly redrew his 48th District as part of their Proposition 50 redistricting plan, agreed Republicans need to focus on local issues — not just national talking points — as a way to combat what he called “Trump derangement syndrome.”

“Is our base fired up?” Spicer asked Rep. Tom McClintock, who also spoke on the panel. 

“I think maybe by summer,” McClintock said, “once we’re past all of the turbulence from Iran.”

Bashing Democrats provided some comedic relief and unity despite the bleak outlook — the president’s party almost always suffers losses in a midterm election. California Republicans reveled in the downfall of Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell, who has been accused by multiple women of sexual assault and until this weekend was the Democratic frontrunner in the race for governor. His potential toppling added fuel to the Republican argument that Democrats, whose gubernatorial vote is split among eight candidates, are incapable of coherent leadership.

“It’s been a couple of hours, so I think we’re due for another Eric Swalwell ‘intern’-ruption,’” Hilton joked at the start of his remarks during a candidate forum on Saturday. “Good thing the Democrats have a great backup plan.”

Trump ‘should’ve stayed out of it.’

Political strategists theorized that Trump’s endorsement of Hilton would guarantee a Democrat’s victory in November, since it would consolidate the GOP vote and eliminate the possibility that Republicans could lock the Democrats out of the top-two primary in June.

But the party faithful in San Diego remain convinced that both Hilton and Bianco will continue to outperform a dysfunctional field of Democrats. Corrin Rankin, the California GOP chair, pointed to numerous polls that show Hilton and Bianco finishing in the top two. 

“I don’t see why that wouldn’t still be the case,” Rankin told reporters on Friday. “Californians see that these two Republicans are better than any of the candidates the Democrats are offering.”

Rankin also said she was surprised that Trump weighed in on anything California-related. “This is not something that he typically does,” she said.

Bianco said he was unbothered by Trump’s decision to endorse his opponent. Throughout the weekend he received the celebrity treatment, strutting around the resort complex with an entourage of supporters in tow. Fans stopped him for selfies and videos for their social media channels. Many of them waved flags and signs bearing his name and phrases like, “Only the sheriff can save us now!”

“This has never been about an endorsement for me,” Bianco said after Saturday’s forum, where candidates for statewide offices made their final pleas to delegates. “This momentum, that excitement, was amazing. It certainly fires me up. It proves to me that I’m doing the right thing, and we’re gonna save our state.”

The sheriff’s supporters were similarly undeterred by Trump’s endorsement of his opponent. 

“I’m not changing my vote. I don’t care who he supports. I’m voting for the best candidate for the state of California, and that’s not who he endorsed, in my opinion,” said April Huckabey, a delegate from Santa Barbara County. “He should’ve stayed out of it,” she added. “Let us run our state.”

Huckabey and her friend Leigh Collier, also from Santa Barbara, agreed the president’s endorsement would not sway Bianco supporters. But it might make some people who were on the fence consider Hilton more strongly. 

Some of Hilton’s supporters were cautiously optimistic about the president’s endorsement, but they were also clear-eyed about how his association with Trump could backfire with people who don’t like the president.

“There’s so many people that just hate our president that you wonder, ‘Could it have a negative effect?’” said Pat Frizzeli, a delegate and the treasurer of the Calaveras County Central Committee. “You just worry.”

Vicky Reinke, chair of the Calaveras County Central Committee, said she was impressed by Hilton’s background in business as a startup founder, as well as his experience working for British Prime Minister David Cameron. She also liked his can-do attitude and willingness to follow through. 

Their county’s annual Lincoln-Reagan dinner fundraiser, where Hilton was scheduled to be the keynote speaker, came on the same day as the funeral for right-wing activist Charlie Kirk. Reinke was impressed that Hilton came to their event after attending the funeral in Glendale, Arizona.

“He could have canceled,” she said. “But he made sure he was still at our event as well as going to Charlie Kirk’s. We were very impressed by that.”

“Promises made, promises kept,” echoed Frizzeli.

Hilton argued that the Trump endorsement could only help him by firing up the party base, since Democrats would try to tie a Republican candidate like him to the president regardless. And despite party leaders’ hopes, he was also confident that there wouldn’t be a top-two GOP sweep in June.

“It’s very clear that I’m going to be in the top two. I don’t know who the Democrat will be, but it’s certainly going to be a Democrat,” Hilton said.

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Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco received 49% of the vote, while Trump’s pick, former Fox News Host Steve Hilton, got 44%. The remaining delegates voted to not endorse either candidate. Sixty percent of the vote was needed to gain the California GOP Party’s endorsement.

“The California Republican Party has an amazing candidate problem,” Party Chairwoman Corrin Rankin said in a statement. She praised both Hilton and Bianco for being “outstanding candidates.”

The three-day event, which began Friday, was held at the Sheraton San Diego Resort, with this year’s theme of “Turning the tide, together.” More than 1,100 delegates from across the state attended dozens of professional training sessions on campaign strategy, election integrity, voter mobilization, artificial intelligence in politics and ballot-harvesting countermeasures.

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, was the keynote speaker Saturday night. He encouraged voter turnout in this year’s midterms, saying, “We can turn this around,” in an apparent reference to the state’s Democratic super-majority. Cruz also took aim at California Gov. Gavin Newsom and embattled Democratic gubernatorial candidate Rep. Eric Swalwell, R-Dublin.

Other speakers included U.S. Reps. Darrell Issa, R-Bonsall, Tom McClintock, R-Modesto, Jay Obernolte, R-Hesperia, several state senators and assembly members, Republican National Committee Co-Chair KC Crosbie, and former White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer.

In a video posted on social media, Hilton showed off his new campaign T-shirt with Trump’s endorsement.

“I would love every delegate here at the convention to focus on what we need to do, to leave this convention strong and united behind President Trump’s leadership, behind my leadership,” Hilton said.

Hilton said people are sick of Democrats and California’s highest cost of living in the country, highest unemployment rate, and highest property tax rate.

Bianco shrugged off the lack of an endorsement, saying Sunday that the result “didn’t mean anything. I’m not running to get endorsements. I’m running for Californians,” according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

Delegates endorsed candidates for statewide office on the June primary ballot in other races, including Gloria Romero for lieutenant governor, Don Wagner for secretary of state, Herb Morgan for controller, Jennifer Hawks for treasurer, Michael Gates for attorney general, Stacy Korsgaden for insurance commissioner, and Sonja Shaw for superintendent of public instruction.

“California Republicans are united around a simple goal: win in November and break the Democrats’ super-majority,” Rankin said. “Our endorsed candidates will talk to Californians about how we will create safer communities, lower costs, and a government that answers to the people. We know what Californians are up against because we live it too. That is why we are going to take this fight directly to the voters.”

The California Republican Party holds 10 of the state Senate’s 40 seats and 20 of the Assembly’s 80 seats. Of the state’s 52 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, seven are held by Republicans.

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The two-hour debate will take place at 6 p.m Pacific time at a venue in the Los Angeles area that is yet to be determined. CNN anchors Elex Michaelson and Kaitlan Collins will serve as moderators.

The debate will air live across CNN, CNN International, CNN en Español and, for viewers without cable, on CNN’s subscription streaming service.

Participating candidates must have at least 3% support among likely primary voters in two state polls or an average of 3% across two polls that meet CNN’s methodology standards. The polls must be released between Feb. 1 and April 27.

The candidates must also have raised, contributed or lent to their campaigns at least $1 million, based on publicly available data from the California secretary of state.

Candidates from both parties are eligible to participate due to California’s “jungle primary” system, in which all candidates appear on the same ballot regardless of political affiliation. The top two finishers advancing to a November runoff, even if they are both from the same party.

Two Republicans, conservative commentator Steve Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, are the leading candidates, according to a poll released Wednesday by UC Berkeley’s Institute of Governmental Studies and co-sponsored by The Times.

The poll showed six Democratic candidates currently qualifying for the debate under CNN’s standards: U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell, former House Rep. Katie Porter, philanthropist Tom Steyer, former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra, former state Assembly Speaker Antonio Villaraigosa and San José Mayor Matt Mahan.

CNN typically does not carry debates involving candidates in statewide races, but the network believes that the California contest is significant enough for a national platform.

“One out of approximately every eight Americans lives in the Golden State and it is at the forefront of some of the most complex challenges of our time,” said David Chalian, CNN’s political director and Washington bureau chief. “California’s jungle primary system also allows for the debate to include a wide spectrum of viewpoints and proposals to tackle those challenges that will reverberate across the country in this pivotal election year.”

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Trump posted late Sunday on his social media platform Truth Social that he has known Hilton for years and called the conservative commentator “a truly fine man” who could turn around a state beset with notoriously high taxes. California, Trump wrote, “has gone to hell.”

“With Federal help, and a Great Governor, like Steve Hilton, California can be better than ever before!” Trump added.

The endorsement — coming about a month before mail ballots go to voters in advance of the June 2 primary — will help Hilton coalesce conservative support in a race with no clear leader. However, Trump is widely unpopular in heavily Democratic California outside his conservative base and Trump’s backing would become a liability if Hilton faces a Democrat in the November election.

With a large field, Democrats have been fearful that a quirk in the state’s unusual “top two” primary system could allow only two Republicans to reach the November general election ballot — Hilton and GOP rival Chad Bianco, the Riverside County sheriff. Trump’s decision — a strong signal to undecided conservative voters — will make that outcome less likely by helping Hilton lure additional support.

Democratic consultant Paul Mitchell called Trump’s decision “the safe bet” for Republicans. Rather than cling to a long shot hope that both Republicans reach the November ballot — or risk that both Hilton and Bianco fall short — Trump’s blessing should consolidate support behind Hilton and allow him to emerge from a large primary field and reach November.

“Having a Republican on the top of the ticket is essential” to drive turnout in critical down-ballot races, with control of the U.S. House in play,” Mitchell added. In an unpredictable, wide-open race, the smart play for the GOP is to “get one Republican on the ballot.”

There are more than 50 candidates on the ballot — including eight established Democrats and along with Hilton and Bianco, the two leading Republicans. An all-GOP general election is possible in California, which puts all candidates on one primary ballot and only the top two vote-getters advance to November, regardless of party.

Polling in early February by the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California found the field had broken into two distinct groups, with Bianco, Hilton and three Democrats — U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell, former Rep. Katie Porter and billionaire climate activist Tom Steyer — in close competition, with other candidates trailing.

In a statement, Hilton thanked Trump for his support and promised to grow jobs and bring down the state’s punishing cost of living. “Together we can turn things around,” Hilton said.

Republicans have not won a statewide election in California in two decades. Registered Democratic voters outnumber Republicans in the state by nearly 2-to-1.

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Bianco has described the pause as a response to what he called “politically motivated lawsuits and court filings,” according to multiple media reports.

The move comes as California Attorney General Rob Bonta pushes forward with a petition before the state Supreme Court in the case Attorney General v. Bianco. The filing seeks, among other things, to ensure that ballots and election materials taken from the Riverside County Registrar of Voters are preserved and returned.

A spokesperson for Bonta’s office told the Los Angeles Times that officials are continuing efforts in both the California Supreme Court and Riverside County Superior Court to enforce compliance and secure the return of the seized ballots.

Separately, the UCLA Voting Rights Project has also petitioned the state’s high court, arguing that California law requires all ballots to remain under the custody of the county registrar.

Bianco’s attorney, Murrieta-based Robert Tyler, told the Los Angeles Times that the sheriff is waiting for the courts to weigh in on what he described as complex legal questions, including the balance of authority between branches of government.

The investigation has drawn increasing scrutiny, particularly as Bianco campaigns for governor. Critics have accused him of pursuing claims of election fraud without sufficient evidence.

During a March 20 press conference, Bianco addressed questions about the probe, which centers on alleged irregularities tied to the Nov. 4 special election in Riverside County. That election resulted in the passage of Proposition 50, which redrew California’s congressional districts and was approved locally with 56.29% of more than 657,000 ballots cast.

Bianco had opposed the measure, and a third-party activist group later alleged discrepancies in the county’s ballot count — claims that Riverside County Registrar Art Tinoco has strongly denied.

Beginning Feb. 9, sheriff’s deputies served search warrants at the registrar’s office, seizing ballots and related election materials. Investigators began reviewing those ballots before a judge appointed a special master to oversee the process.

Bonta has argued in court filings that sheriff’s personnel lack the training and experience necessary to handle ballot counting. He also alleged that hundreds of additional boxes of election materials were seized in recent weeks.

The controversy has also taken on a political dimension. Opponents of Bianco have pointed to his support for former President Donald Trump and suggested the investigation may be tied to broader political ambitions.

In comments to the New York Times, former California Republican Party executive director Jon Fleischman said the timing of the probe raises questions, noting that it comes just months ahead of a statewide election.

California’s primary election is scheduled for June 2.

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The audience went wild, and Schwarzenegger went on to become governor and deliver on his promise to roll back a car tax increase, thereby blowing a $4-billion hole in the state budget.

I think it’s fair to say that in the current gubernatorial campaign season, the excitement level is several decibels below what we experienced in 2003. But once again, it’s fair to say we’ve not seen anything quite like this year’s derby.

“There’s no historical precedent in modern California history for a governor’s race with such a large field or such an amorphous field of candidates,” said longtime political observer Dan Schnur. “Unless you’re paying very close attention, it feels like a big multi-headed political blob.”

To break that down, eight Democrats and two Republicans are running in the primary, and here’s the craziest thing about that:

The two Republicans could be the top two vote-getters because the Democrats have arranged themselves into a circular firing squad. While the Dems scramble for votes in the June 2 primary, the two Republicans lead in the polls because they’re splitting the GOP vote, and under the rules of the top-two primary, they could face off in the November election.

That means that California, which is one of the bluest states in the country and has nearly twice as many registered Democrats as Republicans, could end up with a Republican governor, which would be like having a Dodgers manager who wears a Yankees jersey in the dugout.

And by the way, if it happens, the Republican would be able to shuffle regulatory boards, attempt to squeeze budgets and create a bit of chaos, but still not get much accomplished because of Democratic super-majorities in the Senate and Assembly.

And he would be targeted for recall even before he takes office. (More on that in a minute.)

There is a way for the Democrats to avoid this humiliation, but they can’t seem to agree on anything at the moment. Party leaders have all but asked the candidates at the bottom of the polls to bow out, but understandably the response has been, “Why me? I’m no worse than the others.”

USC decided to host a debate night, a simple enough proposition, but then flubbed the deal by leaving four candidates off the invitation list — four candidates of color. A kerfuffle followed, and the debate was dumped, and an attempt to let everyone into the party fell apart.

So now what?

It’s possible the Dems will huddle around one or two candidates who then move up in the polls and remove the threat of the unthinkable — two Republicans head-to-head. That would be Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco going against former Fox TV host Steve Hilton.

It’s also possible the Dems will play dirty and either spend money to promote one of the two Republican candidates or torpedo one of them. All they want, at the moment, is for a Democrat to make it past the primary, because that would all but ensure victory in November, given voter registration advantages.

And then, if that doesn’t work, there’s the recall scenario.

“You could shut it down probably within five or six months,” said Mike Madrid, a longtime California GOP political consultant.

“It would surely happen,” said Rob Stutzman, a GOP strategist who helped Schwarzenegger knock Gov. Gray Davis out of office, and take his job, in the 2003 recall.

A wealthy Democratic donor could bankroll the recall campaign, Stutzman said. Or public employee unions might put up the money, given that a Republican winner is likely to create a state version of Elon Musk’s ham-handed attempt to fire nearly everyone on the federal payroll.

“The pitch,” Stutzman said of the recall strategy in an email, would be that “Trump still looms and CA must resist, and a GOP gov is a fluke of weird election law. Difficult to imagine it wouldn’t succeed.”

I thought of one more approach the Democrats could use to make sure at least one of them is on the ballot in November. Tom Steyer, a leader for many years on one of the most critical issues in California and the world, climate change, has already spent tens of millions of dollars on TV ads that run about every two minutes, promoting him as the best candidate for governor.

They’re so repetitious, you can’t help but tune them out.

But everyone would pay close attention if Steyer instead ran ads offering incentives for either Bianco or Hilton to leave the state. Steyer could offer $10 million cash for Bianco to move to Hawaii, and maybe throw in a beach house. He could buy a private jet for Hilton to take him back to his native Britain. Every day, there could be new ads upping the ante until one of them leaves the Golden State.

Wouldn’t that be a better use of Steyer’s money? It might even get him elected.

To be honest, having some honest pushback against Democratic authority in California wouldn’t be a terrible thing. It’s not as if Gov. Gavin Newsom and other Democrats are winning the battle against homelessness, housing shortages, affordability and other big challenges, and voters understandably want more — way more — for their tax dollars.

An experienced, no-nonsense, sensible, fiscally conservative GOP candidate would do the state good.

The problem is that the two Republicans in the running, Bianco and Hilton, are Trump toadies.

In an embarrassingly amateurish political stunt, Bianco blew the president a kiss and all but begged for an endorsement by seizing 650,000 ballots from last November’s election to determine whether they were fraudulently counted.

Hilton recently said in an interview with ABC’s Eyewitness News 7 that he believes “everybody supports” Trump’s immigration policies.

Hilton might have missed the news that U.S.-born residents are carrying their passports in case they’re targeted by skin color. That Californians by the thousands have joined the resistance. That despite claims, most deportees don’t have criminal records. And that even some of the state’s GOP lawmakers have begged Trump to stop raiding industries that rely on immigrant help (and are often owned by Republicans).

And by the way, is this a smart time for a GOP candidate in California to be doing his best Trump impression?

The president’s popularity is down, consumer prices are up, he’s shamelessly pardoned drug lords and Jan. 6 barbarians, he thinks the presidency is a game of Battleship after promising to keep us out of wars, gas prices are sky high, he just said he was glad that Vietnam War hero and former FBI Director Robert Mueller had died, and he’s playing golf all day as if everything’s hunky dory.

Like I said, there’s not a big-name character like Schwarzenegger in the race, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t good options. If you like Bianco or Hilton, so be it. Otherwise I suggest you read up on the other eight:

Steyer, Supt. of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, former L.A. Mayor and legislative leader Antonio Villaraigosa, former Rep. Katie Porter, former state attorney general and U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, former State Controller Betty Yee, San José Mayor Matt Mahan, and U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell.

And you better act fast.

The primary is less than 10 weeks away.

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    Bianco said the move is part of an ongoing investigation into claims that some ballots may have been improperly cast in connection with the vote on Proposition 50. The measure, which reshaped congressional district boundaries, was widely viewed as benefiting Democrats, mirroring redistricting efforts seen in Republican-led states such as Texas.

    State officials, however, have firmly rejected those claims. According to reporting by the Riverside Record, the difference between the machine count and the final certified tally was just 103 votes—far smaller than what some critics have suggested.

    The ballots were obtained after investigators from the sheriff’s office served search warrants on the Riverside County Registrar of Voters. Speaking at a press conference Friday, Bianco said a Superior Court judge has appointed a special master to oversee a physical count of the ballots.

    “This is straightforward,” Bianco said. “We’re going to count the ballots by hand and compare that number to what was officially recorded.”

    The investigation gained traction in part due to concerns raised by the Riverside Election Integrity Team, a group of local residents. The group has alleged a discrepancy of more than 45,000 votes between official totals and handwritten tallies from hand-counted ballots.

    Attorney General Rob Bonta pushed back strongly on those assertions, emphasizing that there is no evidence of widespread voter fraud.

    “Counts, recounts, audits, and court rulings have all consistently supported the integrity of our elections,” Bonta said in a statement reported by the Los Angeles Times.

    Bonta also criticized the sheriff’s actions, calling the seizure of ballots highly unusual and warning it could undermine public confidence in the electoral process.

    The situation carries political implications as well. Bianco is among the most visible Republicans in the race for governor, competing in a crowded primary field dominated by Democratic candidates. Under California’s top-two primary system, candidates from all parties appear on the same ballot, with the two highest vote-getters advancing to the general election.

    In recent weeks, Bonta has sent multiple letters to Bianco’s office questioning both the legality and the methodology of the investigation. In one letter, he described the ballot seizure as “unacceptable” and cautioned that it sets a troubling precedent.

    Proposition 50 itself was approved by California voters last year as part of a broader effort, backed by Governor Gavin Newsom, to counter redistricting moves in conservative states. Legal challenges from California Republicans and allies of former President Donald Trump were ultimately unsuccessful, with the U.S. Supreme Court declining to intervene.

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Porter was the clear front-runner over the summer, but by late October she dropped behind Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, a Republican, according to a poll released Friday by the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies and co-sponsored by The Times.

Still, nearly half of the registered voters surveyed remain undecided, evidence that few Californians are paying attention to a race that remains wide open and was eclipsed in recent months by the costly and successful congressional redistricting battle that became a referendum on President Trump. Porter remains the most favored Democratic candidate, which is significant in a state that has not elected a Republican governor since 2006.

“She’s the leading Democrat among the various ones that are in there right now,” said Mark DiCamillo, director of the poll. “But it’s because nobody really on the Democratic side has really jumped out of the pack. It’s kind of a political vacuum at the moment.”

The governor’s race was frozen in stasis for most of the year, first as Californians waited for former Vice President Kamala Harris to decide whether she was going to jump into the race. It wasn’t until late July that Harris announced, no, she was not running. Then, weeks later, Californians became captivated by a special election to reconfigure the state’s congressional districts — which set off a furious, expensive and high-stakes political battle that could help decide which party controls the U.S. House of Representatives.

Now that the special election is over, gubernatorial candidates can “rev up the public to pay attention,” DiCamillo said.

“It’s the time for someone to break through,” he said.

But it won’t be U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla. The senator would have been the top Democrat in the race, but not a heavy favorite, if he decided to jump in, the poll found. Voters gave him the highest favorability rating among all current and potential contenders in the governor’s race. After months of speculation, however, Padilla on Tuesday announced he would forgo a run for governor.

The new poll found that Bianco was supported by 13% of voters in the state, followed by Porter at 11%. The Berkeley poll in August showed that Porter led all candidates with 17% support, with Bianco in second place at 10%.

A Bianco representative said his lead in the polls was evidence that his campaign was resonating with voters.

“It is abundantly clear that Californians are demanding a new path forward,” campaign manager Erica Melendrez said. “Sheriff Bianco represents a safe California, an affordable California, an educated California and a leader with integrity and character that ALL Californians can be proud of.”

DiCamillo said Porter’s 6% drop over those three months was significant, given that the California governor’s race is so tight, but cautioned that it’s still early in the 2026 campaign season and a lot of shifting will happen before the June gubernatorial primary.

Porter’s campaign declined to comment on the drop in support and noted instead that she still led the Democratic field.

“Poll after poll continues to show Katie as the strongest Democrat in the race, driven by a growing coalition of grassroots supporters — not powerful special interests,” spokesperson Peter Opitz said. “Californians know her record of taking on Donald Trump and trust her to tackle our cost crisis, from skyrocketing rent and housing costs to rising healthcare premiums and unaffordable child care.”

Porter came under fire in October after an outburst during an interview with CBS reporter Julie Watts. When the Sacramento-based journalist asked Porter what she would say to Californians who voted for Trump, the UC Irvine law professor responded that she didn’t need their support.

After Watts asked follow-up questions, Porter accused the reporter of being “unnecessarily argumentative,” held up her hands and later said, “I don’t want this all on camera.”

The next day, a 2021 video emerged of Porter berating a staff member during a videoconference with a member of the Biden administration. “Get out of my f— shot!” Porter said to the young woman after she came into view in the background. Porter’s comments in the video were first reported by Politico.

Porter later acknowledged that she mishandled the television news interview, but explained that she felt the reporter’s questioning implied she should cater to Trump’s supporters. Porter also said she apologized to her staff member, saying her remarks were “inappropriate,” that she values her staff and could have handled that situation better.

Her Democratic gubernatorial rivals seized on the videos. Former state Controller Betty Yee called on Porter to drop out of the race, and businessman Stephen Cloobeck and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa attacked her in ads about the uproar.

While difficult to assess, the negative news coverage and publicity surrounding those incidents appear to have taken a toll on Porter’s reputation. No other candidate experienced a similar shift in support.

According to the new poll, 26% of California voters had a favorable opinion of Porter, compared with 33% who saw her unfavorably — with the remainder having no opinion. That’s a major drop from when she was running for the U.S. Senate last year, when 45% of voters had a favorable opinion in February 2024 and 27% were sour on her.

Political scientist Eric Schickler, co-director of the Berkeley institute that conducted the poll, said Porter looks vulnerable, and that makes the governor’s race a more attractive contest for current candidates and those who may be considering joining it.

Aside from Porter and Bianco, the poll found that 8% of voters favored former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, a Democrat; the same percentage backed conservative commentator Steve Hilton. Villaraigosa had support from 5% of voters, Yee 3%, and California Supt. of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond 1%. Cloobeck and former Democratic legislator Ian Calderon registered less than 1%.

Another potential candidate — billionaire developer Rick Caruso — was backed by 3% of voters, the poll found. Caruso said Monday night that he still was considering running for either governor or Los Angeles mayor and will decide in a few weeks.

Schickler said the results of Tuesday’s election may be a sign that moderate or business-friendly Democrats — including Caruso — may not fare so well in a state as Democratic as California. Voters across the nation delivered a sharp rebuke to Trump, electing Democrats in major races in New York City, New Jersey and Virginia and passing Proposition 50, the California ballot measure designed to help Democrats take control of the U.S. House of Representatives after the 2026 election.

“Somebody like Caruso, his narrative would probably look a lot stronger if Democrats still seemed on the defensive and in disarray,” Schickler said. “But after Prop. 50 passing, big Democratic wins in New Jersey and Virginia, I think the argument for a need to change what we’re doing dramatically, at least in a state like California, is less likely to resonate.”

The Berkeley IGS/Times poll surveyed 8,141 California registered voters online in English and Spanish from Oct. 20 to 27. The results are estimated to have a margin of error of 2 percentage points in either direction in the overall sample, and larger numbers for subgroups.

The post After outburst, Katie Porter’s support in the California governor’s race slips, new poll shows appeared first on The Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle.

A Life Shaped by Integrity and Responsibility

Chad Bianco’s story starts far from the chaos of Sacramento. Born in 1967 at Hill Air Force Base in Ogden, Utah, Bianco grew up the eldest of three boys in a small mining town. Raised by hardworking parents, he learned early on that integrity, perseverance, and personal responsibility weren’t just words—they were ways of life. In today’s California, where politicians too often say one thing and do another, Bianco’s belief that “respect is earned through actions, character, and commitment to service” couldn’t be more refreshing.

A Sheriff Who Rose Through the Ranks

Bianco made his way to California in 1989, seeking the kind of opportunity and community he wanted for his future family. He worked his way up from the bottom, graduating at the top of his class at the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Academy in 1993. Shortly after, he began his more than 31-year career with the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department—protecting the very communities we call home.

In 2018, we put our trust in Bianco as Sheriff at a time when the department was facing serious challenges: budget shortfalls, deputies leaving in droves, and strained relations with local police. Instead of making excuses or blaming others, Bianco rolled up his sleeves and delivered. He stabilized the department’s finances, rebuilt morale, and forged new partnerships with other law enforcement agencies. When our county faced the double punch of civil unrest and a global pandemic, Bianco led from the front, earning the respect of deputies and the community alike. It’s no wonder Riverside County voters re-elected him in 2022.

Standing Up for Freedom During COVID-19

One of the moments that truly defined Sheriff Bianco’s leadership was his stance during the COVID-19 pandemic. While other parts of California buckled under Sacramento’s heavy-handed mandates, Bianco stood firm in defense of individual liberty and local control. He made it clear that his department would not become the “mask police” or enforce orders that infringed on personal freedoms. Instead, Bianco respected the right of business owners to make their own decisions and the responsibility of individuals to assess risk for themselves and their families.

This approach wasn’t about ignoring public health—it was about trusting people over government mandates and preserving the freedoms that make America unique. Bianco’s refusal to enforce ever-changing restrictions won him both praise and criticism, but he never wavered. That’s real leadership. For many in Riverside County and across California, Bianco was a rare voice of reason and common sense during a time of chaos and government overreach.

Championing Real Reform for California

Sheriff Bianco isn’t just managing problems—he’s a leader willing to stand up to Sacramento’s failed policies. Day in and day out, he’s seen the impact of soft-on-crime laws and political games that leave families less safe. That’s why Bianco became a leading advocate for reform, most recently with Proposition 36, which passed by a landslide in November 2024. Thanks to Bianco’s tireless efforts, commonsense is finally being restored to California’s criminal sentencing laws.

Grounded in Faith, Family, and Community

But for those of us in Riverside County, what truly sets Chad Bianco apart is his commitment to faith and family. He and his wife Denise have built their life right here in the Woodcrest area, raising children, doting on grandchildren, and staying active with Sandals Church. Bianco isn’t interested in Sacramento power plays—he’s interested in service, putting others above self, and keeping California a place where our families can thrive.

The Leadership California Needs

At a time when our state is at a crossroads, Chad Bianco offers a clear, conservative alternative to business as usual. He understands what it means to earn respect, not demand it. He’s proven that principled leadership can turn around even the toughest situations. For voters in Hemet, San Jacinto, and beyond, Bianco isn’t just another politician—he’s one of us, fighting for our future.

The post Chad Bianco: Proven Leadership Rooted in Family, and Service appeared first on The Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle.