Former State Controller Betty Yee suspends California governor campaign
TONIGHT. ANOTHER CANDIDATE FOR CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR ENDED THEIR CAMPAIGN TODAY. DEMOCRATIC FORMER STATE CONTROLLER BETTY ANNOUNCED SHE IS GETTING OUT OF THE RACE. KCRA THREE POLITICAL DIRECTOR ASHLEY ZAVALA JOINS US NOW. AND WHY DID SHE SAY SHE’S DROPPING OUT? RIGHT. THIS IS ANOTHER TURN IN THIS WHAT HAS BEEN AN UNPREDICTABLE CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR’S RACE. YOU, THOUGH, HAD NOT BEEN DOING WELL IN THE POLLS SINCE SHE DID SAY THAT THAT WAS IMPACTING HER ABILITY TO RAISE MONEY FOR THIS CAMPAIGN. IT REALLY JUST CAME DOWN TO WHERE I’M NOT GOING TO HAVE SUFFICIENT RESOURCES TO GET US TO THE FINISH LINE. AND SO WE SEE POLLS COME OUT EVERY DAY. AND WHEN WE STARTED TO REALLY DO THE DEEP DIVE ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THAT CHUNK OF VOTERS WHO ARE UNDECIDED, IS THAT GOING TO REALLY BE AN OPENING THAT WE FELT WE STILL HAD AN OPENING TO GET A GOOD NUMBER OF THOSE BASED ON EXPERIENCE AND COMPETENCE AND MY BACKGROUND AND WHAT I BRING TO THIS RACE. BUT IT WAS BECOMING CLEAR THAT THE DONORS WERE NOT GOING TO BE THERE. EVEN SOME OF MY FORMER SUPPORTERS JUST FELT LIKE THEY NEEDED TO MOVE ON AS WELL. AND ABOUT TWO HOURS AFTER YOU SAID THAT, ANOTHER ONE OF THOSE POLLS DID COME OUT, A POLL PAID FOR BY THE CALIFORNIA DEMOCRATIC PARTY SHOWS TWO REPUBLICANS STILL. FORMER FOX NEWS COMMENTATOR STEVE HILTON AND RIVERSIDE SHERIFF CHAD BIANCO LEADING THE PACK FOR THE GOVERNOR’S RACE THERE, FOLLOWED BY THE SIX DEMOCRATS WHO ARE LEFT IN THIS RACE. TOM STEYER AND XAVIER BECERRA WERE TIED AT THE TOP OF THAT GROUP WITH 13% EACH. THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY CHAIRMAN SAYS THERE’S STILL TOO MANY DEMOCRATS IN THE RACE AND WILL CONTINUE PAYING FOR AND RELEASING THESE POLLS TO URGE LOWER POLLING CANDIDATES TO GET OUT. THE CHAIRMAN, THOUGH, STILL WILL NOT SAY WHO HE THINKS SHOULD GET OUT OF THIS RACE. I’VE NOT CALLED ON ANY SPECIFIC CANDIDATE TO STEP BACK FROM THEIR THEIR CANDIDACY. I’VE SIMPLY MADE IT CLEAR THAT EVERY CANDIDATE HAS A RESPONSIBILITY TO HONESTLY ASSESS THE VIABILITY OF THEIR CAMPAIGN. THAT BEING SAID, IF YOU’RE AT 2%. I THINK IT’S DIFFERENT THAN IF YOU’RE AT 12% OR YOU’RE AT 22%. THE GOAL IS TO ENSURE THAT WE SEND A STRONG DEMOCRAT INTO THE GENERAL ELECTION. NOW, THESE POLLS, SPECIFICALLY FROM THE CALIFORNIA DEMOCRATIC PARTY, ARE RAISING MORE QUESTIONS THAN ANSWERS. NOW, WITH THE SITUATION AROUND ERIC SWALWELL, LOWER POLLING CANDIDATE XAVIER BECERRA IS PICKING UP NUMBERS WITH ERIC SWALWELL DOWNFALL. SO WHY SHOULD THESE LOWER POLLING CANDIDATES GET OUT? THAT WAS A QUESTION RAISED TO HICKS. ALSO, PRIOR TO LAST WEEK, SWALWELL WAS DOING WELL IN THIS POLL, BUT THEN THESE CLAIMS CAME OUT. IS THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY ON A SLIPPERY SLOPE, ATTEMPTING TO LIMIT OPTIONS ON THE BALLOT? HICKS SAID HE HAS NO REGRETS AND IS AGAIN STICKING TO THIS PLAN OF RELEASING THESE POLLS. SO WE STILL HAVE TWO REPUBLICANS POLLING AT THE TOP. SO THERE’S A POSSIBILITY. THE TOP TWO, THERE’S STILL A CHANCE COULD GO TO NOVEMBER TO THE RUNOFF. AND, YOU KNOW, DESPITE THESE, PEOPLE ARE STARTING TO DROP LIKE FLIES. THEY’RE STILL GOING TO BE ON THE BALLOT WHEN WE GO TO VOTE. AND THAT IS EXACTLY RIGHT. AND IT’S SUCH AN IMPORTANT POINT. ERIC SWALWELL’S NAME, BETTY YEE’S NAME, AND EVERYONE ELSE WHO FILED TO RUN FOR THIS OFFICE BACK IN MARCH WILL STILL BE ON YOUR BALLOT IN JUNE. HICKS ACKNOWLEDGED THEY WILL GET VOTES, BUT HE SAID HE OVERALL EXPECTS VOTERS TO KNOW WHEN PEOPLE ARE OUT OF THE RACE. AND ALSO, I MEAN, THE POLL TODAY DID DEMONSTRATE THAT ERIC SWALWELL SUPPORT DROPPED SIGNIFICANTLY BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM RECEIVED SO MUCH NEWS COVERAGE, HICKS ESSENTIALLY EXPECTS THE SAME FOR ANY CANDIDATE THAT GETS BECAUSE PEOPLE CAN STILL VOTE FOR THEM. THEY MAY NOT KNOW. THEY DON’T. I MEAN,
Former State Controller Betty Yee suspends California governor campaign
Updated: 5:35 PM PDT Apr 20, 2026
With weeks until the primary election to decide who will be on the November ballot for the California governor’s race, a major candidate announced Monday she is suspending her campaign. Former State Controller Betty Yee said she made the decision last week to drop her gubernatorial bid. At this time, she said she has not decided whom she would endorse.Yee is the latest person to drop out of a still crowded race, with many of the prominent candidates being Democrats.The large number of Democrats running for governor is a cause of concern for California Democratic Party Chair Rusty Hicks, who wrote an open letter in March encouraging lower-polling candidates to drop out of the race. Yee said the voter index survey Hicks and the California Democratic Party have been conducting was not helping her efforts in raising funds for her campaign.Why June mattersCalifornia’s voting system allows the top two vote-getters in the primary election to advance to November regardless of political affiliation. Hicks explained that too many Democrats and no strong standout candidate could run the risk of two Republicans winning in June.Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and former Fox News commentator Steve Hilton are the leading Republican candidates.| VIDEO BELOW | California Democratic Party chair urges more Democrats to drop out of governor’s raceFormer U.S. House Rep. Eric Swalwell was seen as a leading Democratic candidate until multiple sexual misconduct allegations surfaced. Amid those claims, Swalwell not only suspended his gubernatorial campaign but also resigned from office as his supporters stopped backing him.Yee spoke with Political Director Ashley Zavala for the April 12 episode of California Politics 360, explaining why she should be governor. Watch here. See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel
SACRAMENTO, Calif. —
With weeks until the primary election to decide who will be on the November ballot for the California governor’s race, a major candidate announced Monday she is suspending her campaign.
Former State Controller Betty Yee said she made the decision last week to drop her gubernatorial bid. At this time, she said she has not decided whom she would endorse.
Yee is the latest person to drop out of a still crowded race, with many of the prominent candidates being Democrats.
The large number of Democrats running for governor is a cause of concern for California Democratic Party Chair Rusty Hicks, who wrote an open letter in March encouraging lower-polling candidates to drop out of the race.
Yee said the voter index survey Hicks and the California Democratic Party have been conducting was not helping her efforts in raising funds for her campaign.
Why June matters
California’s voting system allows the top two vote-getters in the primary election to advance to November regardless of political affiliation. Hicks explained that too many Democrats and no strong standout candidate could run the risk of two Republicans winning in June.
Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and former Fox News commentator Steve Hilton are the leading Republican candidates.
| VIDEO BELOW | California Democratic Party chair urges more Democrats to drop out of governor’s race
Former U.S. House Rep. Eric Swalwell was seen as a leading Democratic candidate until multiple sexual misconduct allegations surfaced. Amid those claims, Swalwell not only suspended his gubernatorial campaign but also resigned from office as his supporters stopped backing him.
Yee spoke with Political Director Ashley Zavala for the April 12 episode of California Politics 360, explaining why she should be governor. Watch here.
See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel