Former California Attorney General Xavier Becerra is rapidly gaining ground on political commentator Steve Hilton in the California governor’s race, according to new polling from the California Democratic Party.
Read more What to expect from the California governor race in 2026?
In the California Voter Opinion, Trend & Engagement Research Index survey released Monday, Becerra has about 18% of voters supporting him, polling the same as Republican candidate Hilton.
The result could foretell a turn in Democrats’ fortunes, as recent gubernatorial race polls have put the two main Republican contenders, Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, as the leaders going into the June 2 primary. The previous VOTER Index survey, released two weeks ago, had Hilton leading the pack at 16%, with Bianco in second, at 14%.
Becerra, also a former U.S. Health and Human Services secretary, was polling at just 4% a month ago. But he has quickly become one of the Democrats’ strongest polling candidates after Eric Swalwell dropped his bid and resigned from Congress last month amid sexual assault allegations. (Swalwell has denied wrongdoing.)
The latest poll puts Bianco in third place at 14%, followed by Tom Steyer, the billionaire hedge fund founder and environmental advocate, at 12%.
Former U.S. Rep. Katie Porter remains in fifth place but saw a slight dip in support, from 10% to 8%, since the last polling. San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, in sixth place, saw his support rise from 5% to 7%.
Trailing in the pack of candidates are former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who’s polling at 2%, and Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond at 1%.
Read more Leading candidates for California governor face off in another high-stakes debate
Swalwell and former State Controller Betty Yee, who ended her campaign in late April, also polled at 1%. Both of their names will still appear on the June 2 primary ballot because they exited the race after the deadline to be removed.
The number of undecided voters dropped from 24% in the last survey to 14%, an indication that more Californians have homed in on a candidate with ballots starting to arrive in mailboxes early this week.
The California Democratic Party, in an attempt to narrow a crowded field of Democratic candidates, made the unprecedented call in March to conduct a series of polls leading up to the primary. The decision came a week after party Chair Rusty Hicks issued an open letter urging low-polling candidates to drop out of the race, a move he said would help prevent two Republicans from advancing to the general election.
Registered Democrats outnumber Republicans by nearly 2-1 in California, and no Republican has won a statewide race in 20 years.
The May 4 poll, the fourth commissioned by the party, surveyed 1,200 likely voters from April 30 to May 2. It was conducted in English and Spanish, both by phone and online. The margin of error is 2.83 percentage points.
Seven candidates have qualified to participate in two debates this week. The first, hosted by CNN, takes place at 6 p.m. Tuesday; the second, hosted by KNBC Channel 4 and Telemundo 52, is scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday.
Read more Hello world!