Xavier BecerraXavier Becerra

Democrat Xavier Becerra has vast legislative and executive experience: former Health and Human Services Secretary under Biden; California attorney general during Trump’s first term, 24 years in the US House of Representatives, involved in passing Affordable Care Act, a term in the California Assembly in the early 1990s. 

Becerra identifies priorities on his website, https://www.xavierbecerra2026.com/.  He promises to work toward affordable universal healthcare for all Californians (I consider that more realistic than promising “Medicare for All”), including CA bargaining prescription drug prices, hunting down fraud and antitrust violations, focus on prevention, and mitigating effects of federal funding cuts.  He wants more housing and promises to cut permitting delays and excessive fees, and reform zoning, while protecting the environment. Noting rising utility bills, his goal is affordable clean energy (in my view, it is not renewable energy that is driving up utility bills, but rather wildfire liability, wildfire mitigation measures & natural gas pipeline safety measures, but it is good to focus on efficiency).  He recognizes AI’s potential benefits, but also the need for regulation (“guardrails”), transparency, mitigation of data center impacts on environment and electrical grid, and preparation for impact on employment.   https://www.xavierbecerra2026.com/priorities/ai/.  Will continue to address homelessness, with a mix of mental healthcare, limited rental assistance to prevent losing a home, more shelter funding and more housing.  A good set of policy goals that will require expert development and funding choices—but all aim in the right direction.  And, of course, he supports reproductive choice and individual rights, including for the LGBTQ+ community, immigrants, and people to live free of discrimination.  

By contrast, like Trump, who endorsed him, Republican Steve Hilton has no experience in government or any other public service, but rather was a Fox “News” talking head.  He offers the “Trump approach”—claiming everything bad or expensive in California is due to Democratic policies (particularly “extremist environmental regulation”), Hilton promises to burn it all down and return to a “golden” past.  His website (at least on 8/14) goes immediately to an AI-generated video portraying himself as the hero confronting a corrupt Democrat “machine.”  In doing so, he follows Trump’s form by seeking divide Californians through anger and lies. His pitch is “what do you have to lose?”  The answer is much of what makes California a great place to live.  

Per Hilton’s website, https://stevehiltonforgovernor.com/policies, he will magically reduce everyone’s taxes (especially the rich) without cutting any government services, eliminate environmental protections and efforts to address climate change (which he believes is not caused by human activity), ensure everyone can have guns, limit reproductive choice, expand crypto grifts (including energy intensive mining), declare an “emergency” to count ballots more quickly to solve an imaginary election problem (to do so, California would have to stop counting ballots mailed on time, but not received by election day), limit AI regulation and boost data center construction, etc.  

Hilton seeks to appeal to Californians by promising that massive tax cuts will be paid for by cutting “waste and fraud.” His claims do not hold up. While a PPIC survey finds Californians are concerned about the budget and feel their taxes are too high, a majority want to increase taxes on the wealthy.  Californians’ spending priorities are health and human services (49%) and K–12 public education (37%); a few say prisons (7%) or higher education (6%).  While the State should always strive for efficiency and reducing fraud, Hilton’s plan is a gift to the rich (via tax cuts) and a hammer on the working class (through service cuts).  

On the tax side (slightly changed from his primary proposal), Hilton’s proposes to exempt the first $150K from CA income tax and further give the rich a flat 8% income tax on income over $150K.  While Hilton’s website says this would reduce CA income tax revenue by $40 billion annually (ignoring his proposed cuts to gas taxes and car registration fees that pay for CA transportation programs), Gemini estimates it would reduce CA income tax revenue by $75 billion to $95+ billion annually.  Because of Prop 13 limits on property tax, California relies on Personal Income Tax (PIT) for 65% to 70% of its General Fund revenue—and the top 1% of earners pay about 45% to 50% of all CA PIT. 

Per Gemini, giving a flat, lower tax rate to California’s rich will cause “budget collapse” by slashing the operating budget by about 40% (even using Hilton’s $40B figure, it is about 20%). The vast majority of the CA General Fund is spent on K-12 schools, debt & pensions, and Medi-Cal; because schools, debt & pension spending is legally required, nearly all cuts would fall first on Medi-Cal—directly contrary to what Californians want and many need. Further, total Medi-Cal paid from General Fund in 2025 was $45 Billion—not enough to pay for Hilton's tax cut even if totally abolished. (Note: CA cuts to Medi-Cal spending results in matching cut from Federal funds, thus doubling impact on needy Californians).  If the revenue loss is close to the $75B to $95B estimate, there would be massive cuts to K-12 and higher education as well as most other programs.  In short, huge tax cuts for California’s top 1% while healthcare, schools, and public safety programs are decimated.

While policies should always be evaluated for effectiveness and cost-efficiency, I like California's respect for human rights, beautiful environment, efforts to mitigate the worst effects of climate change, public education, and efforts to help those in need. My vote is for Becerra.

Frankly, if Hilton weren't MAGA and had better housing policy I would consider endorsing him, just as a protest vote. Becerra is a very weak candidate who won in a fractured field. People he worked with, like Newsom in CA Government or Biden Cabinet colleagues, declined to endorse him in the primary. I have 0 faith in him, but I also wouldn't want a Republican cooperating with Trump, and regardless Hilton has no chance and no one would listen to my other, important endorsements if I picked Hilton.