Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton — the current frontrunner in early returns from the primary election — held an ebullient news conference Wednesday morning on the steps of the Capitol after to deliver a new pitch to California voters.
“The campaign starts today,” said Hilton, who appears likely to face off against Democratic establishment candidate Xavier Becerra in the November general election.
“Our goal is to act quickly and immediately to take less money out of people’s pockets, so they can afford to live in California. … We’ll be working with economists to make sure that we’ve got a plan that is solid and deliverable.”
Hilton, who received an endorsement from President Trump, said he received a message of support from the White House on election night but did not provide details. However, Trump took to Truth Social to wish him well Wednesday.
“Congratulations to Steve Hilton on coming in first, last night, in the California Vote for Governor. If Californians are smart, which I know they are, they will put Steve into the Governor’s Mansion, and watch their State get better at a rate that has probable never been seen before,” Trump said.
Hilton has campaigned as a crusader against California’s Democratic political machine, but in a runoff, Hilton will need a bigger tent. Democrats make up nearly 45% of registered voters in California, while Republicans and independents account for roughly 25% and 22.6%, respectively.
Early returns from Tuesday’s election show many voters appear to be clamoring for change, though, as Hilton had nearly 1.4 million votes to take 27.8% of the ballots counted as of Wednesday morning, according to the Secretary of State;’s office.
Becerra, a former Biden cabinet secretary who was locked in a toxic battle with progressive billionaire Tom Steyer, trailed in second with 1,267,070 — 25.4% of the vote — while Steyer was in third with 979,007, or 19.6% of the vote. California’s top-two primary system allows the two highest vote-getters to advance to the general election regardless of party.
“When people say, ‘How are you going to win in California as a Republican?’” Hilton said, “My question is: ‘How will a Democrat win based on the record that they are putting before the people and offering no change at all?’
“We’re offering change, which is what a majority of Californians want.”
Wednesday’s press conference offered Hilton a chance to reframe the race after months of warning that California voters faced a “now or never” moment to break from one-party Democratic rule.
He noted that many of the people who backed San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, a moderate Democrat who had big tech backing and finished sixth, may find his message appealing. But the core of Hilton’s platform continues to be aimed at working-class voters.
“One of the policies that I’ve been running on in this campaign, which has received the most positive feedback, is of course my plan to make your first $100,000 [income] tax free,” Hilton said.
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“Lots of positive feedback on that policy, including from [progressive ex-congresswoman] Katie Porter, one of the other candidates in the governor’s race, who adopted it as her tax policy.
“Given how high the costs are in California — the highest housing costs in the country, highest gas prices, highest grocery bills, electric bills more than double the national average — that actually that $100,000 level for no state income tax is perhaps too low.”
Hilton’s strong early showing marks a major boost for Republicans in a state where Democrats dominate statewide politics and no GOP candidate has won the governor’s office since Arnold Schwarzenegger left office in 2011.
Democrats are likely to attack Hilton’s candidacy as a referendum on Trump, but Hilton sounded unconcerned Wednesday, noting that it could be a positive for California to have a close working relationship with the White House.
“It’s not a presidential election, it’s not a federal election,” Hilton said. “It’s the election for who’s going to lead our state and who’s going to lead us in the direction that Californians want.
“I think [Democrats] are in for a big shock,” Hilton said, “because the people of California are not happy with the way things are going in this state.”
