California Republicans Forego Endorsement in Open Gubernatorial Primary, Hoping One Will Rise to the Top

Neither of the two candidates vying for the Republican nomination for governor of California received official backing from the party over the weekend, setting up a surprisingly hopeful situation for Republicans who are trying to grab at least one of the top two seats in an open primary this June that has multiple Democrats splitting their party faithful’s votes.At the GOP convention on Sunday, neither President Trump’s favorite, Steve Hilton, nor the sheriff of Riverside County, Chad Bianco, received the 60 percent threshold of delegate votes to win official backing from the party. Mr. Bianco received 496 votes, or 49 percent to Mr. Hilton’s 442, or 41 percent. Another 75 delegates withheld their votes. “I’m honored to be the top vote-getter in the CAGOP convention. I can’t thank the delegates enough for their tireless sacrifice to help save our state. 2026 is the year we save California!” Mr. Bianco posted after the vote.“No endorsement in the Californian Republican Party in the governor race,” Mr. Hilton wrote on X, with an accompanying video. “Now it’s time to get behind the candidate with the endorsement that matters, President Trump’s! We’re leading in the polls – by far, leading across the state… let’s unite to make sure we have a Republican candidate in the top two, and bring the change that California desperately needs!” While the decision leaves both candidates empty-handed, several pundits noted that Mr. Trump’s backing did not elevate Mr. Hilton, a British-American tech startup founder who had previously advised Conservative David Cameron, into the lead, shoring up questions about the president’s ability to crown winners. On the other side, party watchers also noted that Mr. Bianco’s attempt to sound victorious did not belie the actual results. The party’s chairwoman had reportedly said the vote would have gone to a second ballot had either candidate achieved 58 percent, just shy of the 60 percent threshold for an endorsement, but neither got close. The two Republicans are among the10 top candidates polling for the seat in the nonpartisan primary that will pit the top two vote getters against each other in November’s general election. Several well-known Democrats are participating in the race to replace Gavin Newsom, including businessman Tom Steyer; the former mayor of Los Angeles, Antonio Villaraigosa; President Biden’s former health and human services secretary, Xavier Becerra; the mayor of San Jose, Matt Mahan; and congressional members Katie Porter and Eric Swalwell, among others. The thought was that with such a crowded field, Democrats would split the vote enough to allow one of the Republicans to emerge as one of the top two finalists.While the field was wide open, Mr. Swalwell had been the man to beat, according to several Democratic polls. However, his fate is now uncertain after two reports over the weekend alleging rape and sexual misconduct by the lawmaker resulted in Mr. Swalwell losing several high-profile endorsements, including his own campaign chairman, Congressman Jimmy Gomez.“My involvement in any campaign begins and ends with trust. I cannot in good conscience remain in any role with this campaign, and I am stepping down from it effective immediately,” Mr. Gomez said in a statement. The allegations against Mr. Swalwell also gave his Republican adversaries another chance to distinguish themselves.“The level of arrogance for a degenerate like Eric Swalwell to live his life the way he has is astounding. Posting about believing survivors while creating them. I’m praying for his wife and virtually any woman who’s ever been in contact with him,” Mr. Bianco said.Even without a declared frontrunner or an official party endorsement, the odds of Republicans picking up the seat is still something of a pipe dream in a state where Democrats outnumber Republicans two to one in voter registration. “This is good news for boosting our chances of locking democrats out,” wrote Central Valley Politics, which tracks California politics. “Unfortunately that chance is still <1% after swalwell drops out.”While Republicans did not grant an endorsement for the top elected position in the state, the state GOP did offer its support for other key posts, including backing a former state senator, Gloria Romero, who is aligned to Mr. Hilton, for lieutenant governor; the supervisor of Orange County, Don Wagner, for secretary of state; and a former Huntington Beach city attorney, Michael Gates, for attorney general.

California Republicans Forego Endorsement in Open Gubernatorial Primary, Hoping One Will Rise to the Top

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