Becerra Leads Hilton by 21 Points in California Governor Race as Trump Drag Weighs on GOP
Updated
Updated · Los Angeles Times · Jun 11
Becerra Leads Hilton by 21 Points in California Governor Race as Trump Drag Weighs on GOP
3 articles · Updated · Los Angeles Times · Jun 11
Summary
A UC Berkeley IGS-L.A. Times poll put Democrat Xavier Becerra at 52% against Republican Steve Hilton’s 31% in California’s November governor matchup, with the rest undecided.
Party alignment drives the gap: 82% of Democrats back Becerra and 84% of Republicans back Hilton, but Democrats outnumber Republicans statewide by about 20 points and Becerra also leads 43%-28% among no-party-preference and other voters.
Hilton’s Trump endorsement helped him secure the GOP lane in the primary, but 69% of California voters disapprove of the president, a liability pollsters say could hurt Hilton in the general election.
Becerra’s rise accelerated after Eric Swalwell exited amid misconduct allegations he denies; Becerra climbed from 5% in a March IGS poll to first place in the primary, leading with 27.9% of counted votes.
The result also underscored Becerra’s broader appeal on the left: he outperformed Tom Steyer among progressive voters despite Steyer’s $216 million campaign and heavy negative advertising.