2026 midterms · California
California Governor
Governor · primary Jun 2, 2026 · general election Nov 3, 2026 · rated solid democratic
- candidates
- 2
- Democrats
- 1
- Republicans
- 1
candidates advanced
Xavier Becerra (D) and Steve Hilton (R) advanced from the primary held on Jun 2, 2026. The general election is on Nov 3, 2026.
The candidates
Two candidates recorded as advancing from the primary. Two challengers.
Status is the FEC’s: an incumbent holds the seat, a challenger runs against one, and an open seat has no incumbent running. The lab records a primary’s result once it is official; candidates who did not advance are no longer listed.
Democrats
Challenger · advanced from the primary · 1,307 statements classified
Republicans
Challenger · advanced from the primary · 6,786 statements classified
Notes
Rated solid d. Cook Political Report ratings, entered by the lab (last updated by the lab on Jun 24, 2026); a forecaster’s judgement about the general election, not the lab’s.
What they say
The candidates’ statements differ most on credit claiming: from 7.9% to 29%. Both candidates have 10 or more classified statements.
An AI model reads each statement and marks the kinds of statement it contains; each bar is the share of a candidate’s statements with that label. Incumbent members of Congress are measured on everything they publish in office, everyone else on posts on X. A rate describes what was said, not whether it was right.
How do the candidates’ statements compare?
Share of each candidate’s statements with each label; grey tick: median of ranked governor candidates
Personal attacks
Median 2.1% · axis 0–60%
- Becerra D4.6%
- Hilton R9.5%
Policy criticism
Median 12% · axis 0–60%
- Becerra D21%
- Hilton R23%
Policy discussion
Median 47% · axis 0–60%
- Becerra D55%
- Hilton R40%
Bipartisanship
Median 2.0% · axis 0–60%
- Becerra D1.1%
- Hilton R0.8%
Credit claiming
Median 16% · axis 0–60%
- Becerra D29%
- Hilton R7.9%
Show the data
| Candidate | Party | Statements | Personal attacks | Policy criticism | Policy discussion | Bipartisanship | Credit claiming |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Xavier Becerra | D | 1,307 | 4.6% | 21% | 55% | 1.1% | 29% |
| Steve Hilton | R | 6,786 | 9.5% | 23% | 40% | 0.8% | 7.9% |
| Median, ranked governor candidates | 2.1% | 12% | 47% | 2.0% | 16% |
The five kinds of statement
Personal attacks. Overtly questions a named person’s character, integrity or loyalty, or calls them names. Criticising a record or a policy does not count.
Policy criticism. Objects to a specific policy, law or court ruling with fact-based arguments, without personal attacks or emotional appeals.
Policy discussion. Discusses a specific public policy or policy area (health care, taxes, defense, …).
Bipartisanship. Emphasises working across the aisle, compromise or common ground between the parties.
Credit claiming. Claims credit for passing legislation, securing funding or grants, or other accomplishments in office.
Candidates with fewer than 10 classified statements are left out. The grey tick is the median of the ranked governor candidates (50 or more statements), for scale.
Money
Candidates for governor report to their state, not to the Federal Election Commission; no figures for them are on file here.
How much has each candidate raised?
Total receipts reported to the FEC, with cash on hand
No campaign-finance figures are on file for this race’s candidates.