California Dem Chair Asks Candidates To Drop Out Of Gov Race

pol-cadem-2026 — Source: Christina House / Getty

For the first time in nearly a decade, there’s a wide-open path to the governor’s office in California as Gov. Gavin Newsom nears the end of his final term. As such, there’s a crowded field of Democrats campaigning to become California’s next governor. While Californians having plenty of options sounds like a good thing on paper, the head of the California Democratic Party is asking candidates to drop out over fear that the crowded field may inadvertently prevent any Democrats from becoming governor.

According to NBC News, California Democratic Party Chair Rusty Hicks released an open letter on Tuesday warning that the wide-field of candidates runs the risk of splitting the vote to the point no Democrat receives a nomination for governor. Hicks’ concerns come down to the fact that California runs under a “jungle primary,” which means that Democrats and Republicans run in the same primary, with the two highest vote-getters advancing to the general election. The filing deadline for candidates to run is Friday, with the primary being held on June 2.

Hicks asks the candidates to conduct “an honest assessment of your candidacy and campaign,” and that if they “do not have a viable path to make it to the general election, do not file to place your name on the ballot for the primary election,” Hicks wrote in his letter.

“If you decide to file, be prepared to suspend your campaign and endorse another candidate on or before April 15 if your campaign cannot show meaningful progress towards winning the Primary Election in the coming weeks,” Hicks added.

As of now, the Democratic candidates for governor include former Rep. Katie Porter, Rep. Eric Swalwell, former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, billionaire activist Tom Steyer, state Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, former state Controller Betty Yee, and San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan.

So yeah, that’s a lot of people.

Compounding Hicks’ concerns is the fact that no Democrat has emerged as a clear front-runner in the race. Current polling shows that Republican candidates Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and former television personality Steve Hilton are among those with double-digit support. While it would be virtually impossible for either to win in a face-to-face battle with a Democrat, given how low the Republican base is in California, a crowded field could split the vote so significantly that it leads to a surprising upset in the primary.

“So much is at stake in our nation, and so many are counting on the leadership of California Democrats to stand up and speak out at this historic moment,” Hicks wrote in his open letter. “We all have a duty to act in a responsible manner.”

According to the Guardian, many of the lower polling candidates did not take kindly to the request. “Voters choose the next governor, not political gatekeepers,” Mahan’s campaign said in a statement responding to Hicks’ letter. ABC 7 reports that Yee held an event in Oakland on Tuesday evening, during which she filed paperwork to place her name on the ballot.

Thurmond’s campaign released a video addressing the letter. “The California Democratic Party is essentially telling every candidate of color in the race for governor to drop out,” Thurmond said in the video. “This act doesn’t reflect the Democratic Party of 2026. Aren’t we supposed to be the party who embraces democracy? A party of, by, and for the people. Well, the establishment might not be, but our campaign is, and that’s why we’re in this race, to win it.”

It’s worth noting that many of the key Democratic players in California politics, from the California Labor Federation to Newsom himself, have yet to endorse a candidate. Once those endorsements start coming through, it’s widely believed that the candidate field will naturally dwindle ahead of the primary.

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California Democratic Chair Asks Candidates To Drop Out Of Governor Race was originally published on newsone.com