An election will be held in the U.S. state of California on November 3, 2026, to elect the next governor of California. The nominees are Democratic former secretary of health and human services Xavier Becerra and Republican political commentator Steve Hilton. Democratic incumbent Gavin Newsom is ineligible to seek re-election to a third term.
The statewide top-two primary election was held on June 2, 2026, with Becerra and Hilton advancing to the general election among the 61 candidates on the ballot. Republicans have not won a gubernatorial race in California since 2006.
Candidates Democratic Party Advanced to general Xavier Becerra, former U.S. secretary of health and human services (2021–2025) and attorney general of California (2017–2021)
Eliminated in primary Akinyemi Agbede, mathematician and educator Mohammad Arif, immigrants organizer Larry Azevedo, businessman Carolina Buhler, UCLA student Louis De Barraicua, teacher and business owner Sophia Edum-a-Sam, project manager Derek Grasty, Mount Pleasant Elementary School District trustee (2024–present) Joel Jacob, business owner Gary Howard Kidgell, building consultant Matthew Levy, physicist Matt Mahan, mayor of San Jose (2023–present) Kalid Meky (write-in) Barack Obama Shaw, business owner Thunder Parley, software engineer Jibri J. Peavy (write-in) Katie Porter, former U.S. representative from (2019–2025) and candidate for U.S. Senate in 2024 Raji Rab, pilot and perennial candidate Satish Rao, UC Berkeley professor Scott Shields, executive director Tom Steyer, environmental activist, founder of Farallon Capital and candidate for president in 2020 Tony Thurmond, superintendent of public instruction of California (2019–present) Antonio Villaraigosa, former mayor of Los Angeles (2005–2013), former speaker of the California State Assembly (1998–2000), and candidate for governor in 2018 Erin Zezulak, consultant
Withdrawn Ethan Agarwal, tech entrepreneur (ran for U.S. House) Toni Atkins, former president pro tempore of the California State Senate (2018–2024) from the 39th district (2016–2024) and former speaker of the California State Assembly (2012–2016) from the 78th district (2010–2016) (endorsed Steyer) Ian Calderon, former majority leader of the California Assembly (2016–2020) from the 57th district (2012–2020) (initially endorsed Swalwell) Stephen Cloobeck, founder of Diamond Resorts (initially endorsed Swalwell) Zoltan Istvan, founder of the Transhumanist Party, Libertarian candidate for governor in 2018, and Republican candidate for president in 2020 Eleni Kounalakis, lieutenant governor of California (2019–present) (running for state treasurer) Fiona Ma, California state treasurer (2019–present) (running for lieutenant governor) Eric Swalwell, former U.S. representative from (2013–2026) and candidate for president in 2020 (remained on ballot) Betty Yee, California Democratic Party vice chair (2021–present) and former California State Controller (2015–2023) (remained on ballot; endorsed Steyer) Michael Younger, vice president of Calbright College (2021–present) and former deputy secretary of the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency (2019–2021)
Declined Rob Bonta, California Attorney General (2021–present) (running for re-election) Laphonza Butler, former U.S. senator (2023–2024) Rick Caruso, founder of Caruso and runner-up for mayor of Los Angeles in 2022 (endorsed Mahan) Kamala Harris, former vice president of the United States (2021–2025), former U.S. senator (2017–2021), and nominee for president in 2024 Alex Padilla, U.S. senator (2021–present) Adam Schiff, U.S. senator (2024–present) (initially endorsed Swalwell; then Becerra) Buffy Wicks, state assemblymember from the 14th district (2018–present)
Republican Party Advanced to general Steve Hilton, political commentator and former adviser to UK prime minister David Cameron (2010–2012)
Eliminated in primary Ché Ahn, pastor (write-in) James Athans Jr., real estate agent Chad Bianco, Riverside County Sheriff-Coroner (2019–present) Patricia De Luca Basualdo, real estate broker Randeep Dhillon, businessman and farmer Rafael Hernandez, businessman Alicia Olivia Lapp Leo Naranjo IV, veteran Tim Nelson, diplomat Gretha Solórzano, retired nuclear engineer Leo Zacky, vice president of Zacky Farms and candidate for governor in 2021 and 2022 David Zickefoose, real estate investor
Disqualified Brandon Jones, marketing agency founder Jimmy Parker, former judge Ebony Taylor, business owner
Withdrawn Sophia Brink, legislative aide to San Mateo County supervisor David Canepa (endorsed Hilton) Kyle Langford, construction manager (ran for CA-26 as a Democrat) David Serpa, real estate business owner and runner-up for California's 39th congressional district in 2024 Jon Slavet, tech entrepreneur
Declined Mel Gibson, special ambassador to Hollywood (2025–present), actor, and filmmaker Richard Grenell, special presidential envoy for special missions (2025–present) Kevin McCarthy, former speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives (2023) from (2007–2023)
Peace and Freedom Party Eliminated in primary Ramsey Robinson, school social worker
Green Party Eliminated in primary Butch Ware, associate professor and nominee for vice president in 2024 (write-in)
Libertarian Party Withdrawn Tom Woodard, retired CEO (endorsed Hilton, remained on ballot)
Not on primary ballot Nicholas Thompson, college student
Declined Art Olivier, former mayor of Bellflower
No party preference Eliminated in primary Naomi Bar-Lev, musician and writer Joseph Cabrera, administrator Elaine Culotti, entrepreneur Michael J. Dilger (write-in) LivingForGod AndCountry DeMott, chaplain Serge Fiankan, real estate broker Lukasz Adam Filinski Max Fomin, business owner Sean Forbes (write-in) Don Grundmann, chiropractor Jon Henderson, business owner Lewis Herms Dawit Kellel Anne Komarovsk, communications executive Dirk Langer (write-in) Duane Terrence Loynes Jr., nominee of the American Solidarity Party Amanda Martin, entrepreneur Brent Maupin, civil engineer Daniel Mercuri, author, Republican candidate for governor in 2021 and 2022, and candidate for California's 25th congressional district in 2020 Mauro Alberto Orozco, business owner Reza Safarnejad, business owner Sam Sandak, filmmaker Christine Sarmiento, public health nurse Frederic Schultz, human rights attorney Margaret Trowe, hospitality worker Nancy Young, businesswoman
Not on primary ballot Leonard Jackson, shipping company CEO Ryan Tillman, police officer David Thelen, blogger
Declined Nicole Shanahan, attorney and running mate of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in the 2024 presidential election
Primary election Campaign Sixty-one candidates qualified for the primary ballot. California uses a top-two primary system in which all candidates, regardless of party, appear on the same ballot, with the top two advancing to the general election.
Among Republicans, Riverside County sheriff Chad Bianco and political commentator Steve Hilton emerged as the leading candidates, while the Democratic field remained fragmented. This raised concerns that two Republicans could advance to the general election. Those concerns eased after President Donald Trump endorsed Hilton, increasing the chance of a Democrat making it into the runoff because some Bianco supporters would likely shift their support to Hilton due to Trump's endorsement.
Before Swalwell's exit from the race, polls showed that the three Democrats with the greatest amount of public support were representative Eric Swalwell, hedge fund manager and 2020 presidential candidate Tom Steyer, and former representative Katie Porter. Other notable Democrats running included former mayor of Los Angeles Antonio Villaraigosa, former HHS Secretary and state attorney general Xavier Becerra, mayor of San Jose Matt Mahan, and superintendent of public instruction Tony Thurmond. Former Vice President Kamala Harris and U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla opted against running for governor, despite speculation by the media to the contrary.
Eric Swalwell sexual assault allegations
On April 10, 2026, the San Francisco Chronicle reported allegations from a former staffer who provided credible claims that Swalwell had sexually assaulted her on two occasions. That same day, CNN published additional claims from four women, including one allegation of rape and others describing inappropriate conduct and unsolicited nude photos. CNN reported that it had corroborated the accounts. Swalwell denied all of the allegations and sent cease-and-desist letters to two of the women threatening legal action.
Following the allegations, several staff members resigned from Eric Swalwell's campaign, including co-chairs Jimmy Gomez and Adam Gray. The California Teachers Association revoked its endorsement, while U.S. Senators Adam Schiff and Ruben Gallego also withdrew their support. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi called on Swalwell to end his campaign. By April 11, all of Swalwell's 21 fellow members of Congress previously endorsing him had withdrawn their support. The following day, he announced that he was suspending his campaign for governor. On April 13, Swalwell announced he had plans to resign from Congress, and formally left on April 14.
Endorsements
Fundraising +Campaign finance reports as of May 31, 2026CandidateRaisedSpentCash on HandXavier Becerra (D)$6,051,826$9,290,232$793,630Chad Bianco (R)$2,295,579$3,328,860$952,192Steve Hilton (R)$7,332,985$8,483,462$1,724,547Matt Mahan (D)$15,007,412$10,367,538$5,021,023Katie Porter (D)$4,206,459$6,959,945$764,830Tom Steyer (D)$164,592,445$166,766,233$1,286,407
Debates + 2026 California gubernatorial primary debate Date Host Moderator Link Democratic Democratic Democratic DemocraticDemocraticDemocraticDemocraticDemocraticDemocraticDemocraticRepublicanRepublicanKey: Participant Invited Withdrawn Absent Not invited Becerra Mahan Steyer Thurmond Villaraigosa Yee Swalwell Porter Atkins Kounalakis Hilton Bianco 1 Sep. 29,2024 NUHWLos Angeles TimesAP, Politico Laurel RosenhallLisa MatthewsMelanie Mason YouTube 2 Feb. 3,2026 Black Action AllianceKTVUKTTV Greg LeeAndre SeniorMarla Tellez YouTube 3 Feb. 26,2026 Jewish California Alex Cohen YouTube 4 Apr. 22,2026 Nexstar Media GroupNewsNationThe Hill Nikki LaurenzoFrank Buckley YouTube 5 Apr. 28,2026 Asian Pacific American Public AffairsCBS CaliforniaPomona College Pat HarveyRyan YamamotoTony LopezJulie WattsSara Sadhwani YouTube 6 May 5,2026 CNN Elex MichaelsonKaitlan Collins – 7 May 6,2026 KNBCKVEA Colleen WilliamsConan NolanEnrique Chiabra YouTube 8 May 14,2026 CBS NewsSan Francisco Examiner Schuyler Hudak PrionasTom WaitRyan Yamamoto YouTube
Canceled debate A debate scheduled for March 24, 2026, hosted by the USC Center for the Political Future, KABC-TV, and KMEX-DT, was ultimately canceled hours before it was set to begin. 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. The selection drew criticism from chairs of the black and Latino caucuses, 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.
Polling