{"id":259124,"date":"2026-04-09T10:18:09","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T10:18:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/259124\/"},"modified":"2026-04-09T10:18:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T10:18:09","slug":"revolution-or-chaos-the-massive-stakes-if-a-republican-becomes-california-governor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/259124\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Revolution’ or ‘chaos’: The massive stakes if a Republican becomes California governor"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If conservative commentator Steve Hilton is elected California\u2019s next governor, as President Trump wants<\/a>, it would mark a \u201cpolitical revolution\u201d for the liberal state, the candidate said.<\/p>\n

The state\u2019s Democrat-controlled Legislature, \u201cafter all their years of lecturing us about democracy,\u201d would be forced to work with him \u201cto enact the changes that Californians just voted for,\u201d and he would be willing to work with them too, the Silicon Valley entrepreneur and former Fox News host<\/a> said.<\/p>\n

If firebrand Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco<\/a> is elected governor, he will take a decidedly different approach, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou want to know how I\u2019m gonna work with a Democrat Legislature? I\u2019m not. I\u2019m gonna get every single one of them unelected,\u201d Bianco said. \u201cEvery single day, I\u2019m gonna stand on the steps of the Capitol, and I\u2019m gonna tell the California voting public about the idiots in Sacramento that are ruining their lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

For the first time in years, the state GOP is riding into its convention this weekend on a wave of optimism about the upcoming gubernatorial race.<\/p>\n

According to recent polling,<\/a> Hilton and Bianco both stand a chance of winning more votes in the June 2 primary than any of the many Democratic candidates, who have spread thin their party\u2019s nearly 2-1 advantage in voter rolls. If the GOP candidates do that, they would advance to a head-to-head contest in November\u2019s general election, and one would become the state\u2019s first Republican governor since Arnold Schwarzenegger.<\/p>\n

Much could change to prevent that scenario. More Democrats could drop out. Voters could coalesce around one or two of those left. Hilton, with Trump\u2019s endorsement, could consolidate Republican support and push Bianco out of contention.<\/p>\n

Still, the prospect of a Republican governing California, a stronghold of the anti-MAGA movement, has captivated political experts and spectators alike.<\/p>\n

\"A <\/p>\n

Gov. Gavin Newsom imposed a moratorium on the death penalty shortly after taking office, a policy the next governor could reverse. At San Quentin, an inmate is moved from his cell on death row. <\/p>\n

(Robert Gauthier \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n

Trump, in his recent endorsement, said he has \u201cknown and respected\u201d Hilton for many years and would help him \u201cturn it around\u201d in California after an \u201cabsolutely horrendous job\u201d by Gov. Gavin Newsom and other state Democrats.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith Federal help, and a Great Governor, like Steve Hilton, California can be better than ever before!\u201d Trump wrote.<\/p>\n

Many Democrats predict the opposite: grandstanding and gridlock as either Hilton or Bianco\u2019s MAGA-aligned agenda meets stiff resistance from powerful state Democrats repulsed by the president\u2019s movement.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf the new governor decided to go hard MAGA, they would face enormous pushback,\u201d said state Sen. Ben Allen (D-Santa Monica), who considers it unlikely for both Republicans to advance. <\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think there\u2019s any question that the state would descend into chaos,\u201d said Phil Angelides, a Democrat and former state treasurer who lost to Schwarzenegger in the 2006 gubernatorial race.<\/p>\n

The limits of power<\/p>\n

California governors hold substantial power. <\/p>\n

They direct and appoint leaders to the state\u2019s many executive agencies, boards and commissions, which oversee vast portfolios in vital areas, such as the environment, California\u2019s university systems and the state parole board. They craft the state budget and have a line-item veto to eliminate legislative appropriations. They can make major unilateral decisions \u2014 such as welcoming federal troops into California cities \u2014 and command a bully pulpit to drive public opinion and policy, including through statewide ballot measures.<\/p>\n

\"People <\/p>\n

Demonstrators confront California National Guard troops and police outside a federal building during protests in Los Angeles in 2025 after the Trump administration sent in the National Guard. The Republican candidates for California governor said they would welcome similar orders by the Trump administration.<\/p>\n

(David McNew \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

California\u2019s next governor would have the power to end Newsom\u2019s moratorium on the death penalty, appoint state judges and grant state pardons. During emergencies the governor would be able to reshape state regulations, suspend laws and redirect funding, as Newsom did during the COVID-19 pandemic by banning price gouging, halting evictions and postponing the 2020 tax deadline.<\/p>\n

But their power also has limits.<\/p>\n

Many of the governor\u2019s appointees are subject to state Senate confirmation. The Legislature can change and amend the governor\u2019s proposed budget and pass a budget bill distinctly different from his proposal. Democrats, with their supermajority, can also override the governor\u2019s vetoes.<\/p>\n

The independently elected state attorney general can sue to defend state laws, regulations and residents, a power current officeholder Rob Bonta, a Democrat, has exercised more than 60 times to challenge the Trump administration. The California Supreme Court, which leans liberal, can rein in the executive branch if it determines it has violated the state Constitution or other statutes.<\/p>\n

Trump has repeatedly pushed the limits of executive authority and benefited from having a Republican-controlled Congress and a conservative U.S. Supreme Court majority that holds an expansive view of executive power<\/a>. Hilton or Bianco would face the opposite in California, where many legislators would refuse to acquiesce to a Republican governor, especially one almost certain to face a swift recall<\/a>, political experts said.<\/p>\n

Hilton or Bianco could \u201cpotentially build alliances\u201d with Democrats on issues such as housing and affordability and drive change that way, said Kim Nalder, a political science professor and director of the Project for an Informed Electorate at Sacramento State. But \u201cif the Democratic majority in the Legislature decides to dig in its heels, then they could oppose practically everything [the new governor] would do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nalder said Hilton or Bianco could also \u201ctry to rule in a Trumpian way\u201d by testing the boundaries of their authority. She expects Bianco would do so given his recent decision to \u201cviolate the norms of democracy\u201d by seizing more than half a million 2025 ballots<\/a> as part of an unusual local sheriff\u2019s investigation into allegations of voter fraud that state and county officials say have no merit.<\/p>\n

But he \u201cwouldn\u2019t have the public support or the hold on the other branches of government that Trump has,\u201d she said, \u201cso it would be much more difficult.\u201d<\/p>\n

Angelides said electing either Hilton or Bianco would put someone \u201cdeeply associated with the MAGA movement\u201d atop a deeply blue state government in which many career employees hold opposing views, which would cause a cascade of disruptions.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no reason to believe it will be different than the chaos we\u2019ve seen in the Trump administration: an evisceration of a number of state agencies, as well as the departure of a lot of talented people who will not stay and would not jeopardize their careers, their reputations, to work under a governor from the MAGA movement,\u201d Angelides said.<\/p>\n

State employees are protected by powerful unions with deep ties to Democratic leaders, which Hilton said he would sever.<\/p>\n

A Bonta spokesperson said in a written statement that the attorney general \u201cworks in service of the people of California \u2014 not the Governor,\u201d and would not hesitate to exercise his independent authority under the state Constitution.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe hope to maintain a close working relationship with whomever California\u2019s next Governor is, but our mission and our priorities will not change,\u201d the spokesperson said. \u201cRegardless of who is in that office, we will continue to enforce civil rights laws, investigate and prosecute complex crimes, protect public safety, stand up for consumers and the environment, and fulfill our duty to Californians.\u201d<\/p>\n

Senate President Pro Tempore Monique Lim\u00f3n (D-Goleta) also offered a diplomatic response, saying in a statement that \u201cit is critical that whoever our next Governor may be helps advance the lives and goals of California and its communities.\u201d<\/p>\n

In their own words<\/p>\n

Hilton and Bianco both said they would radically reshape state government, in part by dismantling regulations that are hampering development and making basic necessities \u2014 housing, food, gas, electricity \u2014 too expensive.<\/p>\n

Hilton, a top advisor in British Prime Minister David Cameron\u2019s coalition government more than a decade ago, would install agency leaders who would be hyper-focused on slashing costly regulations in order to \u201creduce the burden of cost and hassle on California families and businesses,\u201d he said. \u201cElections have consequences, and so it would be irresponsible not to use maximum aggression to make the changes as quickly as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"A <\/p>\n

The top two Republican candidates running for California governor said they would have a much better relationship with President Trump than Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, who challenged the president\u2019s policies in court and mocked him on social media. <\/p>\n

(Mark Schiefelbein \/ Associated Press)<\/p>\n

Bianco said \u201cevery single regulation in this state is leaving\u201d if he wins, with California becoming far more business friendly. \u201cThe environmental activism, the environmental activism terrorists who are controlling state government, are going to be put in their place, which is outside where nobody hears from them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Both Hilton and Bianco also sharply criticized California Democrats for challenging Trump at every turn, a practice they would end.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would be wanting to work with the administration to help Californians,\u201d Hilton said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy would you ever push back on a president unless they were seriously trying to destroy your state?\u201d Bianco said. \u201cCalifornia is failing because of its own policies.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hilton said he expects Bonta to lose to his Republican running mate for attorney general, Michael Gates. Bianco said that if Bonta remains in office, he would completely \u201cdefund\u201d the state Justice Department.<\/p>\n

Hilton and Bianco also shared similar thoughts on Trump\u2019s immigration crackdown and deployment of the National Guard to Minneapolis and Los Angeles, the latter without Newsom\u2019s approval. <\/p>\n

Hilton said that he \u201ccertainly would never want to see, in California, the scenes that we saw in Minneapolis, nor would I want to see repeated the scenes that we saw in our state last summer,\u201d but that those clashes were \u201cprovoked and instigated by Democrat sanctuary policy,\u201d which he would end.<\/p>\n

California\u2019s sanctuary policies largely bar local police and corrections officials from conducting or assisting federal authorities in immigration enforcement, which state leaders say is not their responsibility and could undermine community trust in local police.<\/p>\n

Bianco said that Trump sent in troops because Newsom \u201cwas derelict in his duties to protect the people of California,\u201d and that it is more important to address \u201cfailed Democrat policies for the last 20 years.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPresident Trump has done not one single thing to harm California in the last year,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Matt Lesenyie, an assistant professor of political science at Cal State Long Beach, said that if Hilton or Bianco becomes governor, Sacramento will see \u201ca lot of gridlock and grandstanding, and that\u2019s from both parties.\u201d<\/p>\n

But he also said he does not expect that to happen, because undecided voters are going to \u201cfigure it out\u201d and coalesce behind a Democrat \u2014 even if at the last moment. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat last slice of the electorate,\u201d he said, \u201cdoesn\u2019t wake up until the last two weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n

Times staff writer Katie King contributed to this report.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"If conservative commentator Steve Hilton is elected California\u2019s next governor, as President Trump wants, it would mark a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":259125,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[16854,114317,7,2926,9,8,15629,1751,8642,3290,31594,114316,4840,225,68621,73059,1519],"class_list":{"0":"post-259124","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-california","8":"tag-bianco","9":"tag-bonta-spokesperson","10":"tag-california","11":"tag-california-governor","12":"tag-california-headlines","13":"tag-california-news","14":"tag-chaos","15":"tag-democrats","16":"tag-hilton","17":"tag-newsom","18":"tag-next-governor","19":"tag-phil-angelides","20":"tag-power","21":"tag-state","22":"tag-state-attorney-general","23":"tag-state-regulation","24":"tag-trump"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/259124","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=259124"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/259124\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/259125"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=259124"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=259124"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=259124"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}