The election for California governor has tapered down to three leading candidates as voting culminates Tuesday in the primary election.
Tuesday is the last day to submit ballots for the primary, which has many voter initiatives and races, including the contest to succeed a termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom.
The election for the two spots on the general election ballot in November has dwindled from dozens of hopefuls to Democrats Xavier Becerra and Tom Steyer and Republican Steve Hilton. Recent polling has shown Becerra surging into the front-runner position, with Hilton and Steyer trailing closely.
Support for Hilton surged after President Donald Trump endorsed his candidacy in April, moving Hilton past Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, also a Republican.
Hilton has urged voters to back his bid for governor to avoid the possibility of being locked out of the November election by two Democrats. He is a political consultant and Fox News contributor who has worked for former British Prime Minister David Cameron.
Hilton has focused his campaign on promises of tax reductions, limits on government spending and cutting bureaucratic red tape. The California resident of nearly 15 years has sharply criticized Becerra over a campaign finance scandal involving two of Becerra’s employees who allegedly misappropriated funds. Becerra has denied knowledge of the alleged wrongdoing.
The former attorney general of California, who has held a number of elected and appointed offices in the state and federal governments, listed his priorities as governor — “fighting Donald Trump,” delivering affordable health care “without debt or delays,” adding more affordable housing, using “the power of the state to lower prices where the market has failed,” making sure artificial intelligence “works for everyone” and governing “differently” to reduce homelessness, which Becerra called “a moral emergency and policy failure.”
If elected, he would be California’s second Latino governor since statehood and the first since Romualdo Pacheco, who served from Feb. 27-Dec. 9, 1875.
Steyer’s campaign has focused on efforts to lower gas prices and electricity costs.
The billionaire investor has advocated for corporations and billionaires to pay higher taxes and has highlighted his desire to generate more employment in the television and film industry statewide by deterring out-of-state production with stay-at-home incentives and by eliminating cumbersome regulations.
Bianco has billed himself as the choice for conservative voters in the gubernatorial election. The Riverside County sheriff since 2018 has called for increasing “penalties on repeat offenders … to keep dangerous criminals off our streets,” while bolstering “legal aid and mental health services for crime victims.”
Border security is a priority in Bianco’s campaign platform. He said California’s “sanctuary state polices” should be abolished to combat human trafficking and reduce the importation of illegal drugs.
Tuesday’s ballot also includes primaries for seven other statewide offices, four seats on the Board of Equalization, all of California’s 52 seats in Congress, 20 of the 40 state Senate seats and all 80 Assembly seats.
