{"id":344271,"date":"2026-06-03T06:59:09","date_gmt":"2026-06-03T06:59:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/344271\/"},"modified":"2026-06-03T06:59:09","modified_gmt":"2026-06-03T06:59:09","slug":"california-governors-race-steve-hilton-leads-xavier-becerra-in-tight-race","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/344271\/","title":{"rendered":"California governor’s race: Steve Hilton leads Xavier Becerra in tight race"},"content":{"rendered":"

Results in the crowded race<\/a> to succeed California Gov. Gavin Newsom showed Republican Steve Hilton holding a close lead over Democrat Xavier Becerra late Tuesday night.<\/p>\n

Hilton, a former Fox News host, entered election night as the candidate with the clearest path to blowing up Democrat\u2019s political grip<\/a> on deep-blue California, and the early\u00a0returns \u2014 78.5% of precincts across the state had partially reported by late Tuesday \u2014 suggest Golden State voters may be open to his message.<\/p>\n

Steve Hilton has held a commanding lead in the polls on the Republican side of the race. AP Photo\/Benjamin Hanson<\/p>\n

Hilton had 26.9% of the vote with nearly 1.2 million votes tallied, while Becerra \u2014 a former Biden administration health secretary \u2014 followed with 25.7%. Progressive billionaire Tom Steyer trailed in third with 19.8%, while Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco remained well behind in fourth with 11.2%.<\/p>\n

Before joining his election night party, Hilton told The Post in an exclusive interview that \u201cchange is coming\u201d for California.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think this state is ready for change, and tonight\u2019s results show that I think that we\u2019re not taking anything for granted,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

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Xavier Becerra became a favorite of the Democratic establishment after Eric Swalwell suspended his campaign. ZUMAPRESS.com<\/p>\n

Billionaire Tom Steyer dropped more than $200 million os hiw own money on the race, calling himself a \u201cclass traitor.\u201d Getty Images<\/p>\n

Late-night returns showed former congresswoman Katie Porter in fifth with 4.9% of votes, followed by San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan with 4.4%, and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa \u2014 who coneded defeat \u2014 with 1.3%.<\/p>\n

The top two finishers in the \u201cJungle Primary\u201d advance to the November general election regardless of party.<\/p>\n

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Hilton scored President Trump\u2019s endorsement in April<\/a>, giving the former TV personality and adviser to ex-UK Prime Minister David Cameron a late MAGA boost.\u00a0But it appears his message might resonate outside of the Republican base.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhether you\u2019re a Republican, a Democrat, an independent, we all know that California needs change,\u201d Hilton told The Post.<\/p>\n

Hilton has attempted to appeal to Republican and independent voters in the race. Stephen Lam\/San Francisco Chronicle via AP<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m the only candidate in this race who\u2019s offering change, and it\u2019s change in a very positive, practical way. Your first $100,000 income tax-free, $3 gas, cut your electric bills in half, a home you can afford to buy \u2014 simple, positive things that everyone can get behind, not partisan, not ideological, just common sense change.\u201d<\/p>\n

Asked about a potential November matchup with Becerra, Hilton sounded bullish.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, he\u2019s the living embodiment of more of the same in an election where 56% of Californians \u2014 according to The Post\u2019s poll<\/a> last week \u2014 think the state\u2019s going in the wrong direction and needs change,\u201d Hilton said. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s the opposite of what Californians want.\u201d<\/p>\n

Becerra, perhaps recognizing the heavy advantage Democrats have in California voter registration (nearly 45%), delivered his own remarks to supporters Tuesday night in Los Angeles in what sounded like a victory speech.<\/p>\n

Xavier Becerra scooped up support from many of the people who were previously backing Eric Swalwell. AP Photo\/Rich Pedroncelli<\/p>\n

\u201cLA is the starting line for millions of success stories across this state, and here in Hollywood\u2019s hometown, we love a good underdog story,\u201d Becerra said, referencing not only the story of his immigrant parents but also the slow start to his campaign.<\/p>\n

Becerra\u2019s campaign was mostly ignored by Californians up until early April, when disgraced ex-congressman Eric Swalwell\u2019s campaign and career imploded over rape and sexual assault allegations<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe underdog stayed in the fight,\u201d Becerra said. \u201cLike my parents, I never gave up, never stopped putting one foot in front of the other, never stopped believing in the beacon-like goodness of California.\u201d<\/p>\n

Steyer, a progressive billionaire who spent more than $200 million of his own money<\/a> trying to muscle his way into the governor\u2019s mansion, has been locked in a \u201ctoxic\u201d fight with Becerra<\/a> to lock up support among Democrats and the left.<\/p>\n

Steyer and his wife, Kat Taylor, visited the Los Angeles Metro on Election Day. Getty Images<\/p>\n

In a speech to supporters Tuesday, Steyer did not suggest he was bowing out of the race as he took aim at his fellow billionaires and corporate interests that have opposed his campaign.<\/p>\n

\u201cCalifornia is the richest state in the richest country in the history of the world,\u201d Steyer said. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s unacceptable that right now so many Californians struggle to make ends meet. \u2026 Californians are being priced out of their homes every single day. While it happens, we see billionaires do whatever they have to to get whatever they can out of the system, and then do everything they can to hoard their wealth and avoid paying taxes, and we see corporations continue to rig the system for themselves, raising your prices to juice their profits. <\/p>\n

\u201cScrew that, California. California deserves better. Working people deserve better. Democracy matters, justice matters, the truth matters.\u201d<\/p>\n

While the president\u2019s endorsement of Hilton animated Democrats, the Republican outsider managed to tap into the same angst that motivated many of Steyer\u2019s supporters. <\/p>\n

Hilton has accused one-party Democratic rule of letting crime, homelessness, and the affordability crisis to explode since Arnold Schwarzenegger left the governor\u2019s office in 2011.<\/p>\n

Becerra\u2019s rise has been a surprise to many, but in recent weeks signs started popping up that the career politician benefited from a surge in activity by social media bots propping up his \u201cnot flashy\u201d record<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Steyer\u2019s campaign, meanwhile, generated its own bizarre headlines after paying social media influencers like \u201cFoos Gone Wild\u201d and \u201cThe Shade Room.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

Becerra has benefited from Newsom\u2019s orbit rallying around his candidacy. Getty Images<\/p>\n

Porter, once viewed as a progressive darling, steadily faded over the course of the race and its possible she\u2019ll end up being a spoiler for Steyer. The former Orange County congresswoman never recovered after leaked videos showed her cursing out staff<\/a> and storming out of a TV interview<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Mahan tried to pitch himself as a moderate Silicon Valley mayor in a crowded field, but his late entry and a lack of enthusiasm outside of wealthy donors<\/a> \u2014 like billionaires Rick Caruso, a Los Angeles businessman, and Google co-founder Sergey Brin \u2014 appears to have resulted in little more than a campaign ritual that burned millions.<\/a><\/p>\n

Former Rep. Katie Porter has not been able to recover from leaked videos of her behaving badly. AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n

San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan isn\u2019t expected to win, but his votes could have a big impact on the race. Getty Images<\/p>\n

Swalwell\u2019s collapse \u2014 he\u2019s now the subject of multiple criminal probes<\/a> \u2014 opened space for Becerra, who appeared to benefit most as party insiders in Newsom\u2019s orbit began searching for an alternative<\/a> to stop Hilton and Bianco from boxing out Democrats.<\/p>\n

Gov. Gavin Newsom\u2019s nearly eight years as governor have shaped how many voters feel about California\u2019s direction. REUTERS<\/p>\n

California\u2019s infamously slow vote counting means the final answers on the primary may not come for days or weeks. Mail-in voting often causes delays, and final official results are not due to the state by July 3 while certification is scheduled for July 10.<\/p>\n

Newsom sent a letter last month demanding counties speed up their tallies<\/a>, but it\u2019s unclear if the Secretary of State will be able to meet that goal.<\/p>\n

Thad Kousser, a political science professor at UC San Diego,\u00a0cautioned that the governor\u2019s race may be far from over despite Hilton and Becerra\u2019s strong showings.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we\u2019ll have to be patient as more votes are counted, because the remaining votes are likely to be more Democratic-leaning,\u201d Kousser told The Post. \u201cMany Democrats held on to their ballots until the last few days, for strategic reasons, and as those votes are counted, the results could shift leftward.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cStill, I think that what these early returns remind us is that, even in blue California, the Republican Party still has significant strength, typically winning 40% of the vote. This is, after all, the state in which Donald Trump won the most votes.\u201d<\/p>\n

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