November 3, 2026 | |||
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| Elections in California |
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The 2026 California gubernatorial election will take place on November 3, 2026, to elect the governor of California, with the statewide nonpartisan top-two primary election scheduled for June 2, 2026. Incumbent Democratic governor Gavin Newsom is term-limited and cannot seek re-election to a third term.
Over two dozen candidates have declared. As California is heavily Democratic, the Republicans have not won a statewide race in California since 2006 or held statewide office since 2011. However, the fragmented Democratic field in this year's top-two primary could allow two Republicans to advance to the general election. [1] The California Democratic Party has urged low-polling candidates to drop out to prevent this outcome. [2] [3]
Not on primary ballot
Not on primary ballot
| No. | Date | Host | Moderator | Link | Democratic | Democratic | Democratic | Democratic | Democratic | Democratic | Democratic | Democratic | Democratic | Democratic | Republican | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Key: P Participant I Invited W Withdrawn A Absent N Not invited | ||||||||||||||||
| Becerra | Mahan | Steyer | Thurmond | Villaraigosa | Yee | Swalwell | Porter | Atkins | Kounalakis | Hilton | Bianco | |||||
| 1 | Sep. 29, 2024 | NUHW Los Angeles Times AP, Politico | Laurel Rosenhall Lisa Matthews Melanie Mason | YouTube | A | A | A | P | A | P | A | A | P | P | A | A |
| 2 | Feb. 3, 2026 | Black Action Alliance KTVU FOX 2 KTTV FOX 11 | Greg Lee Andre Senior Marla Tellez | Youtube | P | P | P | P | P | P | I [g] | I | W | W | P | I |
| 3 | Feb. 26, 2026 [194] | Jewish California | Alex Cohen | Youtube | I [194] | P | P | A | P | A | P | I [194] | W | W | P | I [194] |
| 4 | Apr. 28, 2026 [195] | Asian Pacific American Public Affairs Association CBS California Pomona College | Pat Harvey Ryan Yamamoto Tony Lopez Julie Watts Sara Sadhwani | TBA | ||||||||||||
A debate scheduled for March 24, 2026, hosted by the USC Center for the Political Future, KABC-TV, and KMEX-DT, [196] was ultimately canceled hours before it was set to begin. [197] Using a formula developed by USC political science professor Christian R. Grose that combined fundraising and polling data, only six candidates were invited: Republicans Bianco and Hilton, and Democrats Mahan, Porter, Steyer, and Swalwell. [198] The selection drew criticism, particularly because no nonwhite candidates qualified and because Mahan’s strong fundraising offset weaker polling. USC and over 50 scholars defended the formula, but the debate was canceled after organizers could not agree to expand the field. [197]
| Source of poll aggregation | Dates administered | Dates updated | Xavier Becerra (D) | Chad Bianco (R) | Steve Hilton (R) | Katie Porter (D) | Tom Steyer (D) | Eric Swalwell (D) | Antonio Villaraigosa (D) | Other/ Undecided [h] | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 270toWin [199] | March 11 – April 7, 2026 | April 8, 2026 | 3.8% | 12.0% | 17.0% | 10.0% | 11.8% | 13.5% | 3.3% | 28.6% [i] | Hilton +3.5% |
| Decision Desk HQ [200] | through April 6, 2026 | April 10, 2026 | 3.4% | 12.0% | 17.7% | 8.3% | 11.6% | 14.1% | 2.4% | 30.5% [j] | Hilton +3.6% |
| Race to the WH [201] | through April 5, 2026 | April 7, 2026 | 3.8% | 13.6% | 17.1% | 10.0% | 11.4% | 13.8% | 3.2% | 27.1% [k] | Hilton +3.3% |
| RealClearPolitics [202] | February 3 – March 15, 2026 | March 18, 2026 | 4.3% | 13.0% | 14.7% | 11.3% | 10.3% | 13.7% | 4.0% | 28.7% | Hilton +1.0% |
| Average | 3.8% | 12.7% | 16.6% | 9.9% | 11.3% | 13.8% | 3.2% | 28.7% | Hilton +2.8% | ||
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size [l] | Margin of error | Xavier Becerra (D) | Chad Bianco (R) | Steve Hilton (R) | Matt Mahan (D) | Katie Porter (D) | Tom Steyer (D) | Eric Swalwell (D) | Tony Thurmond (D) | Antonio Villaraigosa (D) | Betty Yee (D) | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Binder Research (D) [203] [A] | April 1–6, 2026 | 800 (LV) | ± 3.5% | 4% | 13% | 22% | 5% | 11% | 12% | 18% | 2% | 2% | 2% | – | 10% |
| Evitarus (D) [204] [B] | March 31 – April 5, 2026 | 1,200 (LV) | ± 2.8% | 4% | 14% | 14% | 4% | 7% | 11% | 12% | <1% | 4% | 1% | 4% [m] | 24% |
| Kreate Strategies [205] | March 23–29, 2026 | 700 (LV) | ± 3.7% | 2% | 10% | 19% | 4% | 8% | 13% | 13% | – | 2% | 3% | 6% [n] | 20% |
| Echelon Insights (R) [206] [C] | March 12–17, 2026 | 600 (LV) | ± 4.1% | 3% | 14% | 20% | 4% | 10% | 13% | 15% | 1% | 3% | 2% | 16% | |
| Evitarus (D) [207] [B] | March 12–17, 2026 | 2,000 (LV) | ± 2.2% | 3% | 14% | 16% | 3% | 10% | 10% | 10% | 1% | 3% | 2% | 5% [o] | 24% |
| Berkeley IGS [208] [D] | March 9–14, 2026 | 3,889 (LV) | ± 2.5% | 5% | 16% | 17% | 4% | 13% | 10% | 13% | 1% | 4% | 1% | 16% | |
| Emerson College [209] | March 7–9, 2026 | 1,000 (LV) | ± 3.0% | 3% | 11% | 13% | 3% | 8% | 11% | 17% | 1% | 3% | 2% | 1% [p] | 25% |
| Politico /UC Berkeley/ TrueDot [210] | February 25 – March 3, 2026 | 1,004 (LV) | ± 3.3% | 5% | 11% | 19% | 3% | 11% | 13% | 11% | 1% | 4% | 2% | 3% [q] | 17% |
| Global Strategy Group (D) [211] [E] | February 27 – March 2, 2026 | 1,340 (LV) | ± 3.5% | 5% | 15% | 20% | 3% | 13% | 16% | 11% | – | 2% | – | – | 15% |
| Independent Voter Project [212] | February 13–20, 2026 | 868 (LV) | ± 3.6% | 3% | 23% | 15% | 2% | 12% | 8% | 18% | 1% | 3% | 2% | 0% [r] | 13% |
| Emerson College [213] | February 13–14, 2026 | 1,000 (LV) | ± 3.0% | 4% | 14% | 17% | 3% | 10% | 9% | 14% | 2% | 3% | 2% | 2% [s] | 21% |
| PPIC [214] | February 3–11, 2026 | 1,049 (LV) | ± 3.9% | 5% | 12% | 14% | 3% | 13% | 10% | 11% | 2% | 5% | 5% | 11% [t] | 10% |
| Tavern Research (D) [215] [F] | February 2–5, 2026 | 1,097 (LV) | ± 3.3% | 6% | 20% | 12% | 2% | 9% | 9% | 10% | – [u] | 3% | – [u] | 4% [u] | 25% |
| EMC Research (D) [216] [G] | January 29 – February 4, 2026 | 1,400 (V) | – | 6% | 21% | 17% | 5% | 12% | 9% | 18% | 1% | 3% | 2% | 2% [v] | 4% |
| Global Strategy Group (D) [211] [E] | January 29 – February 3, 2026 | – (LV) | – | 4% | 18% | 18% | 3% | 12% | 10% | 11% | – | 3% | – | – | 21% |
| J Wallin Opinion Research [217] [218] [H] | January 29 – February 1, 2026 | 1,000 (RV) | – | 6% | 11% | 14% | 4% | 8% | 12% | 9% | 3% | 7% | 4% | 7% [w] | 15% |
| RBI Strategies & Research (D) [219] [I] | January 25–29, 2026 | – (LV) | – | 4% | 15% | 16% | 3% | 13% | 8% | 14% | 2% | 3% | – | – | 23% |
| Tulchin Research (D) [220] [J] | January 22–28, 2026 | 1,000 (LV) | ± 3.1% | 5% | 15% | 15% | – | 13% | 10% | 14% | 1% | 7% | 2% | 2% [x] | 16% |
| Public Policy Polling (D) [221] [K] | January 20–21, 2026 | 1,001 (V) | – | 6% | 18% | 17% | 5% | 14% | 8% | 12% | 1% | 2% | – | – | 17% |
| David Binder Research (D) [222] [L] | January 17–20, 2026 | 800 (LV) | ± 3.5% | 5% | 17% | 14% | – | 11% | 8% | 11% | 2% | 3% | 1% | 3% [y] | 25% |
| CivicLens Research [223] | December 14–16, 2025 | 400 (LV) | ± 4.5% | 1% | 14% | 18% | – | 9% | 7% | 12% | 3% | 2% | 2% | 3% [z] | 31% |
| FM3 Research (D) [224] [225] | November 30 – December 7, 2025 | 632 (LV) | ± 4.0% | 3% | 17% | 18% | – | 13% | 6% | 17% | 1% | 3% | 1% | – | 20% |
| Emerson College [226] | December 1–2, 2025 | 1,000 (LV) | ± 3.0% | 4% | 13% | 12% | – | 11% | 4% | 12% | 2% | 5% | 2% | 5% [aa] | 31% |
| Lake Research Partners (D) [227] [M] | November 17–20, 2025 | 600 (LV) | ± 4.0% | 6% | 10% | 17% | – | 15% | 4% | 10% | 3% | 7% | 3% | 1% [ab] | 22% |
| PPIC [228] | November 13–19, 2025 | 1,086 (LV) | ± 3.9% | 14% | 10% | 14% | – | 21% | – | – | 2% | 8% | 7% | 19% [ac] | 5% |
| Tavern Research (D) [229] [F] | October 27–30, 2025 | 1,001 (LV) | ± 4.0% | 9% | 16% | 12% | – | 15% | – | – | 2% | 5% | 3% | 9% [ad] | 29% |
| EMC Research (D) [230] [N] | October 22–26, 2025 | 1,000 (LV) | ± 3.1% | 9% | 14% | 20% | – | 16% | 3% | 11% | 3% | 5% | 3% | 16% [ae] | |
| Emerson College [231] | October 20–21, 2025 | 900 (LV) | ± 3.19% | 5% | 11% | 16% | – | 15% | – | – | 3% | 5% | 2% | 4% [af] | 39% |
| Bold Decision [232] | October 16–21, 2025 | 509 (LV) | ± 4.3% | 8% | 14% | 13% | – | 12% | 7% | – | 1% | 7% | 4% | 4% [ag] | 29% |
| Emerson College [233] | April 12–14, 2025 | 899 (LV) | ± 3.2% | 3% | 4% | – | – | 12% | – | – | 2% | 5% | 3% | 17% [ah] | 54% |
with Rick Caruso
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size [l] | Margin of error | Xavier Becerra (D) | Chad Bianco (R) | Rick Caruso (D) | Steve Hilton (R) | Katie Porter (D) | Antonio Villaraigosa (D) | Betty Yee (D) | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Berkeley IGS [234] [D] | October 20–27, 2025 | 8,141 (RV) | ± 2.0% | 8% | 13% | 3% | 8% | 11% | 5% | 3% | 5% | 44% |
| Emerson College [235] | September 15–16, 2025 | 1,000 (RV) | ± 3% | 5% | 8% | 4% | 10% | 16% | 4% | 3% | 10% [ai] | 38% |
| Berkeley IGS [236] [D] | August 11–17, 2025 | 4,950 (RV) | ± 1.5% | 9% | 10% | 4% | 6% | 17% | 4% | 2% | 9% [aj] | 38% |
| True Dot/ Politico [237] | July 28–August 12, 2025 | 875 (RV) | ± 2.6% | 9% | 15% | 6% | 10% | 21% | 9% | 6% | 15% [ak] | 9% |
| Emerson College [238] | August 4–5, 2025 | 1,000 (RV) | ± 3% | 3% | 7% | 4% | 12% | 18% | 5% | 2% | 13% [al] | 38% |
with Alex Padilla
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size [l] | Margin of error | Xavier Becerra (D) | Chad Bianco (R) | Rick Caruso (D) | Steve Hilton (R) | Alex Padilla (D) | Katie Porter (D) | Antonio Villaraigosa (D) | Betty Yee (D) | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emerson College [235] | September 15–16, 2025 | 1,000 (RV) | ± 3% | 3% | 8% | 4% | 10% | 7% | 16% | 4% | 2% | 9% [am] | 36% |
with Kamala Harris
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size [l] | Margin of error | Xavier Becerra (D) | Chad Bianco (R) | Kamala Harris (D) | Eleni Kounalakis (D) | Kyle Langford (R) | Katie Porter (D) | Antonio Villaraigosa (D) | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emerson College [233] | April 12–14, 2025 | 911 (LV) | ± 3.2% | 2% | 4% | 31% | 2% | 2% | 8% | 2% | 10% [an] | 39% |
with John Cox, Lanhee Chen and Rob Bonta
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size [l] | Margin of error | Toni Atkins (D) | Xavier Becerra (D) | Rob Bonta (D) | Lanhee Chen (R) | John Cox (R) | Kamala Harris (D) | Eleni Kounalakis (D) | Katie Porter (D) | Tony Thurmond (D) | Antonio Villaraigosa (D) | Betty Yee (D) | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capitol Weekly [239] | February 3–7, 2025 | 692 (RV) | – | 2% | 4% | 7% | 10% | 21% | 23% | 2% | 16% | 1% | 2% | 2% | 10% [ao] |
| 1073 [ap] | 3% | 5% | 9% | 9% | 21% | – | 5% | 26% | 2% | 3% | 3% | 12% [aq] |
with Brian Dahle
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size [l] | Margin of error | Toni Atkins (D) | Xavier Becerra (D) | Chad Bianco (R) | Brian Dahle (R) | Steve Hilton (R) | Eleni Kounalakis (D) | Katie Porter (D) | Tony Thurmond (D) | Antonio Villaraigosa (D) | Betty Yee (D) | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USC/CSU Long Beach/ Cal Poly Pomona [240] | September 12–25, 2024 | 1,685 (LV) | ± 2.4% | 1% | 3% | 5% | 5% | 4% | 2% | 14% | 1% | 3% | 3% | 9% [ar] | 50% |
| Tulchin Research (D) [241] [J] | August 8–12, 2024 | 800 (LV) | ± 3.5% | – | – | – | 13% | 10% | 10% | 4% | 4% | 13% | 7% | – | 39% |
with Steve Garvey
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size [l] | Margin of error | Toni Atkins (D) | Xavier Becerra (D) | Chad Bianco (R) | Steve Garvey (R) | Eleni Kounalakis (D) | Katie Porter (D) | Tony Thurmond (D) | Antonio Villaraigosa (D) | Betty Yee (D) | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Breakthrough Campaigns [242] [O] | November 22–26, 2024 | 1,228 (LV) | ± 2.8% | 1% | 2% | 6% | 18% | 8% | 21% | 3% | 3% | 3% | 23% [as] | 12% |
| 3% | 6% | 14% | 21% | 9% | 24% | 2% | 3% | 6% | 1% [at] | 11% |
"Democratic Primary Poll" [au]
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size [l] | Margin of error | Toni Atkins (D) | Stephen Cloobeck (D) | Kamala Harris (D) | Eleni Kounalakis (D) | Katie Porter (D) | Tony Thurmond (D) | Antonio Villaraigosa (D) | Betty Yee (D) | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emerson College [243] [P] | February 10–11, 2025 | 469 (RV) | ± 4.5% | 3% | 1% | 57% | 4% | 9% | 1% | 4% | 2% | 3% [av] | 17% |
| 3% | 3% | – | 5% | 21% | 3% | 9% | 3% | 9% [aw] | 45% |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No party preference | Margaret Trowe | |||
| Democratic | Tony Thurmond | |||
| Democratic | Thunder Parley | |||
| Democratic | Katie Porter | |||
| Libertarian | Tom Woodard | |||
| Republican | Leo Samuel Zacky | |||
| Democratic | Erin "Zez" Zezulak | |||
| Republican | David Zickefoose | |||
| No party preference | Amanda Martin | |||
| Democratic | Matt Mahan | |||
| No party preference | Brent Maupin | |||
| No party preference | Daniel Mercuri | |||
| Democratic | Betty Yee | |||
| No party preference | Nancy D. Young | |||
| Republican | Alicia Olivia Lapp | |||
| Democratic | Matthew Chase Levy | |||
| No party preference | Duane Terrence Loynes Jr. | |||
| No party preference | LivingForGod AndCountry DeMott | |||
| Republican | Patricia De Luca Basualdo | |||
| Democratic | Louis A. De Barraicua | |||
| Republican | Randeep S. Dhillon | |||
| Democratic | Raji Rab | |||
| Peace and Freedom | Ramsey Robinson | |||
| Democratic | Satish Rao | |||
| No party preference | Jon Henderson | |||
| No party preference | Lewis Herms | |||
| Republican | Rafael M. Hernandez | |||
| Republican | Steve Hilton | |||
| No party preference | Naomi Bar-Lev | |||
| Republican | Chad Bianco | |||
| Democratic | Xavier Becerra | |||
| Democratic | Carolina Buhler | |||
| No party preference | Joseph Cabrera | |||
| No party preference | Elaine Culotti | |||
| Democratic | Joel E. Jacob | |||
| No party preference | Serge Fiankan | |||
| No party preference | Lukasz Adam Filinski | |||
| No party preference | Max Fomin | |||
| Republican | Leo Naranjo IV | |||
| Republican | Tim Nelson | |||
| No party preference | Reza Safarnejad | |||
| No party preference | Sam Sandak | |||
| No party preference | Christine R. Sarmiento | |||
| No party preference | Frederic C. Schultz | |||
| Democratic | Scott P. Shields | |||
| Republican | Gretha Solórzano | |||
| Democratic | Tom Steyer | |||
| Democratic | Eric Swalwell | |||
| Republican | James Athans Jr. | |||
| Democratic | Larry Azevedo | |||
| Democratic | Mohammad Arif | |||
| Democratic | Akinyemi Agbede | |||
| Democratic | Derek Grasty | |||
| No party preference | Don J. Grundmann | |||
| No party preference | Dawit Kellel | |||
| Democratic | Gary Howard Kidgell | |||
| No party preference | Anne Komarovsk | |||
| Democratic | Sophia Edum-a-Sam | |||
| Democratic | Barack D. Obama Shaw | |||
| No party preference | Mauro Alberto Orozco | |||
| Democratic | Antonio Villaraigosa | |||
| Total votes | 100.0 | |||
| Source | Ranking | As of |
|---|---|---|
| The Cook Political Report [244] | Solid D | January 23, 2026 |
| Inside Elections [245] | Solid D | August 28, 2025 |
| Sabato's Crystal Ball [246] | Safe D | September 4, 2025 |
| Race to the WH [247] | Safe D | December 7, 2025 |
Partisan and media clients
Attorney General Rob Bonta won't run for California governor in 2026, he told Playbook...instead, he'll seek reelection as AG and back former Vice President Kamala Harris if she jumps into the fray to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom.
'No, no. Definitely not,' Schiff said when NOTUS asked whether he would consider running [for governor in 2026]
Republican Jon Slavet is dropping out of the race for California governor, ending his long-shot bid.
McCarthy dismissed a run for California governor in 2026
A Sacramento County judge Thursday denied attempts to get on the ballot by Green Party gubernatorial candidate Butch Ware and state Assembly candidate Kelly Honig. Each was disqualified for mistakes, with Ware failing to redact—and then improperly redacting—his tax returns and Honig filing paperwork with the wrong county registrar, according to the California Secretary of State.
we are establishing here in our county elections office our write-in candidacy because one way or the other you will not be disenfranchised
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link){{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)Hilton's gubernatorial campaign already boasts endorsements from MAGA-aligned national Republicans, including Vivek Ramaswamy, Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk and California Rep. Kevin Kiley, who lined up behind Hilton shortly after he launched his campaign in April.
One of Swalwell's California colleagues, Rep. Ro Khanna, endorsed Tom Steyer in the governor's race on Tuesday, saying the billionaire climate philanthropist is "for taxing billionaires like himself. He's for getting all corporate money out of Sacramento. And he's for passing single payer." Khanna previously told Playbook he had talked with Steyer as well as former Rep. Katie Porter about the race, and was prioritizing finding someone who supported single-payer health care.
Rep. Ami Bera will today endorse Eric Swalwell in the race for governor. Bera, who represents Sacramento County, has served in Congress with Swalwell since 2012 and they worked together on the House Intelligence Committee. He said "California needs a governor who will be a fighter and a protector — and I can think of no one better prepared for that job than Eric."
Thurmond has been endorsed by several former and current state lawmakers and U.S. Rep. Laura Friedman.
Betty Yee has been endorsed for Governor by Progressive Democrats of America – California (PDA-CA).
Official campaign websites