The televised debate among California’s leading candidates for governor on Wednesday underscored how quickly the race is becoming a clash of priorities as voters prepare to choose a nominee in a primary set for June 2. The event, hosted for broadcast and streaming by Nexstar Media Group, brought together two Republicans—conservative commentator Steve Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco—and four Democrats, including former U.S. Rep. Katie Porter, billionaire Tom Steyer, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan and former Biden administration Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra.
Across the roughly 90 minutes, candidates addressed questions spanning housing and wildfire insurance, social media and gas taxes, while frequently attempting to carve out contrast with rivals. The exchange largely stayed orderly, with few instances of candidates talking over or interrupting one another as they worked to make a positive impression on voters who might be seeing them for the first time.
The debate also reflected the wider uncertainty of California’s primary system, which places all candidates on a single ballot regardless of party and advances the two top vote-getters to the November general election. Democrats have been warning that a crowded field could produce an outcome that would be especially damaging to their party, including the possibility that two Republicans advance, a result they described as historically consequential.
The homelessness discussion quickly became a partisan measuring stick, with Democrats generally crediting outgoing Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom’s efforts while Republicans argued that the state’s spending has not produced meaningful progress. Hilton said, “Everything has taken us in the wrong direction,” while Bianco called the state’s homelessness record a “dismal failure,” framing the crisis as evidence of policy failure.
When candidates turned to a separate social policy question—whether California should ban social media use for children under 16—their responses did not track neatly along party lines. Steyer and Becerra said they support a ban. Hilton suggested a social norm approach rather than a formal ban at the same age, saying there should be such a norm to keep smartphones away from children under 16. Porter said she does not support a ban at that age, but indicated she could support a different age ban, pointing to how two of her teenage children use social media differently. Bianco and Mahan, by contrast, said the decision should be left to parents, with Mahan saying he supports parental consent for kids under 16 and that cellphones should be banned in schools.
The race’s internal Democratic competition surfaced repeatedly as candidates pushed on experience, personal wealth and what they portrayed as different paths forward for California. References to Steyer’s wealth came up often, and Mahan tied Steyer’s record to federal immigration enforcement by saying, “The only housing Tom Steyer’s built has been private prisons and ICE detention centers,” echoing criticism that Steyer invested in private prisons that today house people picked up in federal immigration raids. Steyer responded during the debate that he and his wife have financed thousands of low-income housing units.
Steyer’s spending and profile were also debated directly, with questions centered on his role as the only billionaire in the race and how he is funding his campaign. Steyer said corporations, including utility companies, are spending millions against him, and he framed his own candidacy as focused on taxing wealth and challenging major industries, adding, “I’m the billionaire who wants to tax other billionaires,” and “I’m the billionaire who’s taking on the electric monopoly and trying to break up their power,” and “I’m the billionaire who wants to tax the oil companies and make polluters pay.”
Candidates also addressed the state’s broader national context, with Democrats portraying California as a place where they would fight President Donald Trump and Republicans arguing that Democrats are responsible for the state’s woes. In that exchange, Bianco said Democratic policies were driving up the cost of living, while Hilton pointed to the party’s dominance at the state level, saying, “All the Democrats here are part of this system that obviously isn’t working.”
The debate came after a period of instability in the Democratic field, following U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell’s exit from the race and Congress after sexual assault allegations that he denies. Becerra and Mahan were late additions to the debate lineup after Swalwell exited, and the debate order had been reshuffled as the campaign adjusted to new attention and endorsements.
Porter, who has drawn attention for her appearances in Congress, positioned herself as a candidate who could define a distinct approach, and campaign coverage described the possibility that she could become California’s first woman governor. Meanwhile, Becerra is seeking what would be another first, with the debate coverage noting that he would be the first Hispanic governor in modern history if elected. Mahan, the only candidate in the debate lineup who currently leads a major Northern California city, said he has made gains against homelessness and crime, while Hilton and Bianco argued that California’s politics and governance have failed to deliver.