{"id":10154,"date":"2026-05-28T16:01:55","date_gmt":"2026-05-28T16:01:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=10154"},"modified":"2026-05-28T16:01:55","modified_gmt":"2026-05-28T16:01:55","slug":"new-poll-points-to-possible-becerra-hilton-matchup-in-california-governors-race","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=10154","title":{"rendered":"New poll points to possible Becerra-Hilton matchup in California governor\u2019s race"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Less than a week before California\u2019s June 2 primary, Democrat Xavier Becerra and Republican Steve Hilton appear increasingly likely to claim the top two spots in the race for governor, easing Democratic fears of a shutout and setting up a possible November matchup between the two parties, according to a new poll released Wednesday.<\/p>\n

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The Public Policy Institute of California poll found Becerra with 23% support among likely voters and Hilton with 20%, followed by Democratic billionaire philanthropist Tom Steyer at 15%, Republican Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco at 13% and former Democratic Rep. Katie Porter at 12%.<\/p>\n

The two candidates who receive the most votes June 2, regardless of party, will compete for the governor\u2019s office in November.\u00a0Earlier polls had raised Democratic concerns that a crowded field could split the party\u2019s vote and allow Hilton and Bianco, the two leading Republicans, to advance.<\/p>\n

\u201cOver the past two months, both Becerra and Hilton have consolidated support within their own respective parties,\u201d said PPIC Statewide Survey Director Mark Baldassare. \u201cHilton has benefitted from President Trump\u2019s endorsement, while Becerra appears to have drawn in many of Democrat Eric Swalwell\u2019s voters after he suspended his campaign.\u201d<\/p>\n

No other candidates reached double-digit support, including Democratic San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan with 7%, Democratic former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa with 5% and Democratic Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond with 1%, the poll found.<\/p>\n

The poll surveyed 1,707 California adults, 986 of them identified as likely voters, from May 14-18. The margin of error was 3.2 percentage points for the California adults sample and 4.1 percentage points for the likely voters.<\/p>\n

The results track with other recent independent polls that suggested Democrats were coalescing around Becerra, a former California Attorney General, and Republicans around Hilton, a former senior advisor to British Prime Minister David Cameron who moved to California in 2012.<\/p>\n

An Emerson College poll May 13 found Becerra leading with 19% and Steyer and Hilton tied at 17%, followed by Bianco at 11% and Porter at 10%.<\/p>\n

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\n<\/div>\n

Trump\u2019s endorsement of Hilton last month was expected to boost him among Republicans. Among Democrats, Swalwell\u2019s exit from the race amid sexual misconduct allegations he has denied rocked the field and created an opening for Becerra, who\u2019d been polling in single digits, to surge past Steyer. Former state Controller Betty Yee dropped out in April amid low polling to back Steyer.<\/p>\n

Wednesday\u2019s PPIC poll showed Hilton 5 points ahead of Steyer. A Democrat would be heavily favored for governor in a matchup against a Republican in California, where Democrats have a nearly 2-to-1 advantage over Republicans statewide in party registration.<\/p>\n

Steyer\u2019s campaign said in a statement Wednesday that its internal polling since the PPIC poll was in the field showed Steyer more competitive with Becerra.<\/p>\n

The same poll also offered an early look at several likely November ballot fights. It found that 54% of likely voters would vote for an initiative likely headed for the November ballot imposes a one-time tax of up to 5% on taxpayers with assets valued over $1 billion. The initiative is most popular among Democrats (76%), 18- to 34-year-olds (75%), and renters (71%), while Republicans overwhelmingly oppose it (82%) and older voters, independents, and homeowners are split on the proposal.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

Voters were nearly evenly divided over another expected November ballot measure that would establish new voter identification requirements, with 49% in support and 51% opposed.<\/p>\n

And a recently proposed initiative to eliminate California\u2019s top-two primary system may face an uphill climb, the poll found. Six in ten likely voters said the top-two primary has been mostly a good thing for California.<\/p>\n

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Poll finds voters favoring Becerra and Hilton, also inclined toward proposed November tax on billionaires. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10153,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[43,2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10154","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-based-on-facts-either-observed-and-verified-directly-by-the-reporter-or-reported-and-verified-from-knowledgeable-sources","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nNew poll points to possible Becerra-Hilton matchup in California governor\u2019s race - Silicon Valley Moving Post<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=10154\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"New poll points to possible Becerra-Hilton matchup in California governor\u2019s race - 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