Former Biden Cabinet member Xavier Becerra remains the top Democrat in the California governor’s race despite being targeted by a barrage of negative political ads and enduring sharp attacks from his rival candidates during recent debates, according to a poll released Tuesday by the state Democratic Party.
Billionaire Tom Steyer, a Democrat who is shattering self-funding records for statewide office, has been flooding the television airwaves, internet and social media with ads ripping Becerra’s long record in public office, as well as for accepting campaign donations from oil giant Chevron. But, thus far, that has not been enough for Steyer to overtake Becerra.
The survey found that 21% of likely voters backed Becerra, who also served in Congress and as California’s attorney general, while 15% backed Steyer. Among the other top Democrats: Former Orange County Rep. Katie Porter received 7%; San José Mayor Matt Mahan came in at 4%; and state Supt. of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa registered at 1%.
Becerra on Tuesday said he believes he has climbed in the polls because voters are now paying attention to the race.
“They’re really looking closely at who’s out there, and I think I’ve been one of the beneficiaries of folks looking for a place that they can feel comfortable, where they can trust,” Becerra told reporters after a campaign event in South Los Angeles. “I think more and more as people look at the candidates, they’re going to start to crystallize behind somebody who won’t need training wheels, as I say, when they get into the governor’s office and can hit the ground running, day one.”
He said he thinks Steyer’s attacks aren’t working because Californians are skeptical of the billionaire.
“He’s spending like no one before, and he’s hitting like no one before, and so far, it hasn’t made a difference,” Becerra said. “We continue to surge, even after weeks of his barrage of lies and attacks. … California voters are not anxious to have someone who wants to buy the office.”
Leading all candidates in the race was Republican Steve Hilton, a former Fox News host, who was supported by 22% of likely voters. His top GOP challenger, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, was backed by 10%, the poll showed. The two Republicans were once roughly tied in polling, but Hilton has surged since President Trump endorsed him.
Hilton said the numbers reflect the momentum and energy he has seen campaigning around the state as well as his campaign’s internal polling.
“I’m obviously happy to see I’m at the top,” Hilton said in an interview Tuesday. But he repeated warnings that he has previously issued to GOP voters: that they should not be so confident in the polling to take a chance on voting for Bianco in hopes of two Republicans advancing to the November general election. Such a scenario could lead to what Hilton described as a “massively dangerous risk” of two Democrats advancing in the June 2 primary because of the state’s unique primary system.
Under California’s top-two primary system, the candidates who finish in first and second place advance to the general election, regardless of their political party or affiliation.
“It’s obvious if you look at the math, it’s beyond the point to debate whose position you prefer, whose experience you prefer. There are only two candidates in the race who represent change. Only one of us can make the top two,” Hilton said. “We can’t take that for granted.”
While Hilton and Becerra right now appear to be the likeliest candidates to finish in the top two, there still remains plenty of time for political fortunes and voter support to rise or fall. Ballots were mailed to the state’s 23.1 million registered voters and early voting sites opened this month, but most Californians have not sent them.
For Becerra, the strong poll results indicate an astounding turnaround for a campaign that appeared all but dead just weeks ago. In early April, the California Democratic Party tracking poll showed Becerra with support from just 4% of likely voters. That changed after then-Northern California Rep. Eric Swalwell, who had been the front-running Democrat in the race, withdrew from the campaign and resigned from Congress after he was accused of sexual assault and misconduct.
The California Democratic Party launched a series of tracking polls in March after leaders and allies grew increasingly concerned that Republicans would win the top two spots in the primary, shutting the party out of the November general election. This prospect, while statistically possible given the crowded field of candidates running for governor, has grown increasingly less likely as California voters finally focused on the contest to lead the nation’s most populous state and the world’s fourth-largest economy.
“Certainly we’re closer to where we had hoped to be with a strong Democrat moving into the general election,” said Rusty Hicks, chairman of the state Democratic Party. “This race isn’t over. We’ve certainly seen a lot of twists and turns to this point, but you do see some clear consolidation taking place for both Democrats and Republicans.”
The Evitarus poll of 1,200 likely voters took place between May 14 and 16 and has a margin of error of 2.83% in either direction.
