California Governor G-CA-2026 · regular

Open in research →
Cook Political Report
Solid D
As of Apr 16, 2026
✓✓
Sabato's Crystal Ball
Safe D
As of Mar 19, 2026
✓
Polymarket
—
Refreshed today
D+12
Cook PVI
Incumbent
Gavin Newsom
Democrat · term_limited

Race dynamics

Steyer's $132M+ self-funding has saturated CA media. Eric Swalwell exited. Becerra surged to top-tier. Hilton leads fragmented GOP field. Watch whether Dem field self-cannibalizes enough to allow GOP into general.

Macro context

Steyer's $132M+ self-funding has completely saturated state media. Steyer outpaces closest competitor 20-30x. Watch whether crowded Dem field cannibalizes itself.

History

Newsom won 2022 with 59%. CA's nonpartisan top-2 jungle primary (June) often delivers all-Dem November matchups in statewide races.

Top contenders

Tom Steyer

Billionaire activist
Declared
Raised $132.0M as of Apr 15, 2026
Sourced: perplexity + gemini

Matt Mahan

Mayor of San Jose
Declared
Raised $13.0M as of Mar 31, 2026
Sourced: perplexity + gemini

Steve Hilton

Political commentator
Declared
Raised $4.1M as of Mar 31, 2026
Sourced: perplexity + gemini

Full candidate field

Republicans (2)

Steve Hilton

Political commentator
Declared
Raised $4.1M as of Mar 31, 2026
Sourced: perplexity + gemini

Chad Bianco

Riverside Co. Sheriff
Declared
No fundraising data
Sourced: perplexity + gemini

Democrats (6)

Katie Porter

Former U.S. Rep.
Declared
Raised $2.8M as of Mar 31, 2026
Sourced: perplexity + gemini

Xavier Becerra

Former HHS Secretary
Declared
Raised $2.6M as of Mar 31, 2026
Sourced: perplexity + gemini

Tom Steyer

Billionaire activist
Declared
Raised $132.0M as of Apr 15, 2026
Sourced: perplexity + gemini

Matt Mahan

Mayor of San Jose
Declared
Raised $13.0M as of Mar 31, 2026
Sourced: perplexity + gemini

Antonio Villaraigosa

Former LA Mayor
Declared
No fundraising data
Sourced: perplexity

Eleni Kounalakis

Lt. Governor
Declared
No fundraising data
Sourced: perplexity

Other / Independent (0)

None listed.

Key dates

  • Jun 2, 2026 — primary
  • Nov 3, 2026 — General election

Race data merged from Perplexity Pro Deep Research and Gemini Deep Research, both dated 2026-05-05, with cross-source verification. Confidence badges reflect that verification: ✓✓ both sources agree, ✓ single-source, ⚠ sources disagree. Ratings published by Cook Political Report and Sabato's Crystal Ball; visual treatment is ours, no partnership implied. See /map methodology for the full freshness picture.