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Map the Midterms2026 midterms information · not official

Governor

California Governor — 2026

California elects a governor on November 3, 2026. Democrat Xavier Becerra and Republican Steve Hilton advanced from the June 2 top-two primary.

Cook Political Report: Solid D (August 20, 2026)

What this office is

A governor is the state’s chief executive. Typical duties include proposing a budget, signing or vetoing bills, appointing some officials, and commanding the state National Guard under state and federal law. Term length and term limits are set by each state’s constitution. Lieutenant-governor pairing, if any, follows that state’s ballot design. California uses a top-two primary: the two highest vote-getters advance regardless of party.

Why it matters in 2026

Cook rated the open California governorship Solid Democratic as of August 2026. The office directs the largest U.S. state government and shares a ballot with other constitutional offices and qualified propositions. County elections officials mail vote-by-mail ballots to registered voters.

Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom is term-limited. The seat is open.

Primary percentages below are certified results reported by Ballotpedia. Proposition text, if any, is official state language — not rewritten here.

Candidates

Names below are declared or nominated figures reported as of mid-September 2026. Party labels identify tickets only. This is not an endorsement and not a certified list.

Official portrait of Xavier Becerra

Xavier Becerra

Democratic

Advanced from the June 2, 2026 top-two primary (28.0%)

Becerra served as U.S. secretary of health and human services from 2021 to 2025 and as California attorney general before that. He also represented a Los Angeles-area House district. He is one of two candidates in the November governor’s race.

Read more:WikipediaBallotpedia

Photo: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services / public domain. Public domain (U.S. government work). Source

Steve Hilton

Republican

Advanced from the June 2, 2026 top-two primary (24.6%)

Hilton is a television commentator and former adviser to U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron. He advanced from California’s June 2026 top-two primary to the November gubernatorial election.

Read more:WikipediaBallotpedia

Published polls

Published surveys tagged to CA GovernorIndividual published surveys. Not a Map the Midterms average and not a prediction.
PollsterDatesSampleDemRepSpread
Public Policy Institute of California
PPIC Statewide Survey: Californians and the Environment (July 2026) · accessed September 17, 2026
Jun 29–Jul 6, 20261,003 LV · ±3.861Becerra36HiltonBecerra +25

Questions readers ask

When is Election Day?
The 2026 U.S. midterm general election is Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Early voting and mail-ballot calendars differ by state.
Is this the official candidate list for this governor’s race?
No. Map the Midterms is not an election office. Confirm qualified names with the California Secretary of State and the official sample ballot for your address.
Are the poll numbers a forecast?
No. Tables show individual published surveys with the pollster, dates, sample, and a link. They are not a prediction and not an average unless a cited aggregator says so.

Other California guides