Gov. Gavin Newsom cannot run again because of term limits. The leading Democrats trying to succeed him are Xavier Becerra, a former California attorney general; and Tom Steyer, a former hedge fund manager. Steve Hilton, a former Fox News host, is the top Republican.

Follow live updates, analysis and highlights from 2026 election day's key races, such as California governor, Los Angeles mayor, L.A. City Council and more.

Fresh polling days before the June primary shows Republican Steve Hilton and Democrats Xavier Becerra and Tom Steyer in a tight race.

Republican Steve Hilton and Democrat Xavier Becerra, positioned in the top two spots in the race for California governor following Tuesday’s primary election, projected optimism Wednesday that their standings would hold and propel them to the November runoff election.

California voters head to the polls Tuesday for the state’s primary election, kicking off the race for November’s general election. While many have already cast ballots by mail, millions more are expected to vote in person as they weigh in on races for governor,

Gubernatorial Democratic candidate Xavier Becerra continues to show substantial gains among likely voters for California’s June primary in polls released on Monday, April 20. Becerra leads in an Independent Voter Project poll, capturing ...

Second place is a toss-up in the race to be California's next governor.

Steve Hilton, Xavier Becerra and Tom Steyer have emerged as the leading contenders to advance to November's general election, according to early counts.

See live results from the 2026 California Governor primary election as votes are counted by candidate and county.