dropped out<\/a> of the race earlier this month amid accusations of sexual assault and other misconduct, Becerra has seen a boost in polls, fundraising and endorsements. <\/p>\nOn Tuesday, Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas endorsed Becerra alongside 14 Democratic members of the legislative body.<\/p>\n
Arguing that Californians are under constant threat from President Trump\u2019s policies, Rivas cited Becerra\u2019s decades-long record in public office, including defending Obamacare and young immigrants, or \u201cDreamers,\u201d to argue that Becerra is best positioned to lead the state.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s no time to learn on the job \u2014 we need a governor who\u2019s ready to fight back on day one,\u201d Rivas said in a statement, noting that Becerra sued the Trump administration 122 times while he was California\u2019s attorney general. \u201cWe have a strong Democratic field for governor. But right now, we need someone ready on day one. Xavier Becerra is that leader.\u201d<\/p>\n
Becerra said he was honored to receive the legislators\u2019 backing.<\/p>\n
\u201cI look forward to working with the Speaker and legislators on Day One to tackle the problems Californians care about most \u2014 from the skyrocketing cost of groceries and housing to our unyielding fight against the Trump Administration\u2019s disastrous policies,\u201d he said in a prepared statement. \u201cCalifornians need an experienced and trusted leader who doesn\u2019t need on-the-job training.\u201d<\/p>\n
The endorsements come at a critical moment in the governor\u2019s race \u2014 just two weeks before ballots begin arriving in Californians\u2019 mailboxes. In addition to Swalwell dropping out, former state Controller Betty Yee ended her bid on Monday because of a lack of resources. On Tuesday, Yee endorsed hedge fund founder turned environmental warrior Tom Steyer. <\/p>\n
She said in a video that she was backing Steyer because of his \u201cstanding up our democracy and getting young people involved, certainly with respect to our climate and the climate crisis we\u2019re facing.\u201d <\/p>\n
Becerra and Steyer are now the Democratic front-runners in the race. <\/p>\n
Despite Becerra\u2019s long tenure in state and federal office, the unflashy politician is not well-known among California voters. He was among the underdogs in the 2026 gubernatorial race. Swalwell, by contrast, was among the leading Democratic candidates. <\/p>\n
Amy Thoma, a former Republican strategist who is no longer affiliated with a political party, noted that Becerra\u2019s surge comes at a critical moment in the election, shortly before ballots land in Californians\u2019 mailboxes.<\/p>\n
\u201cVoters are starting to tune into the race. Yes, they want someone who will stand up to Trump, but it also seems they want someone with experience who can address the very real issues facing the state,\u201d Thoma said.<\/p>\n
She added that Becerra\u2019s life story is \u201cincredibly compelling.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe word authentic is overused, but every time he talks about his love for this state, for his family and wanting to make California work for everyone, it comes across incredibly sincere,\u201d Thoma said. \u201cVoters can see through candidates who fake it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Becerra was respected by colleagues across the aisle, including former GOP legislative leader and state Republican party chairman Jim Brulte. Both men were elected to the state Assembly in 1990 and though their politics often sharply differed. However, they had a warm relationship.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was progressive and I am a conservative,\u201d Brulte said. \u201cWe never agreed much on policy, but he is a good man with a great heart.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 2026 governor\u2019s race has been unlike any in recent memory, with no clear front-runner in a crowded field of candidates and voters just beginning to pay attention to the contest shortly before the June 2 primary.<\/p>\n
There were two prominent Republicans and eight prominent Democrats in the race, leading to fears among Democratic leaders in the state that their party\u2019s candidates could be shut out in the general election because of California\u2019s unique primary system. The two candidates who win the most votes in the June 2 primary will move on to the November general election, regardless of party affiliation.<\/p>\n
Democratic leaders remain concerned that despite California\u2019s sapphire-blue tilt, the number of their party\u2019s candidates in the race could lead to a splintering of Democratic voters that results in two Republicans advancing to the November ballot.<\/p>\n
Six prominent Democrats remain in the race, after Swalwell and Yee dropped out.<\/p>\n
The race \u2014 lacking a global superstar such as Arnold Schwarzenegger or the scion of a storied political family and former governor like Jerry Brown \u2014 is ephemeral. Anything can happen before the June 2 primary.<\/p>\n
But Becerra is having a moment. In addition to the new endorsements, he has seen notable movement in polls, most recently in a survey released Monday by the state Democratic Party. Becerra jumped nine points from the party\u2019s last poll, tying Steyer at 13%.<\/p>\n
While Becerra will never be able to match Steyer\u2019s deep pockets, he raised more than $1 million on ActBlue, the top Democratic fundraising platform, in the week ending Saturday, making him the biggest fundraiser on the site in the nation.<\/p>\n
\u201cNinety-seven percent were first-time donors,\u201d Becerra\u2019s campaign said in a statement. \u201cThis is not a donor base being recycled. It is a movement being born.\u201d<\/p>\n
Times staff writer Nicole Nixon contributed to this report from Sacramento.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Xavier Becerra, a former Cabinet secretary in President Biden\u2019s administration, appears to be surging in the wildly unsettled…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":19174,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[9268,1595,7795,11587,6666,11585,414,8,9643,5497,9,413,754,11586,736,751,87,7],"class_list":{"0":"post-19173","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-top-stories","8":"tag-administration","9":"tag-becerra","10":"tag-california-governor","11":"tag-california-voter","12":"tag-californians","13":"tag-democratic-candidate","14":"tag-governor","15":"tag-headlines","16":"tag-june","17":"tag-movement","18":"tag-news","19":"tag-party","20":"tag-poll","21":"tag-populous-state","22":"tag-primary","23":"tag-race","24":"tag-time","25":"tag-top-stories"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@news\/116445912924118129","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19173","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19173"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19173\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19174"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19173"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19173"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19173"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}