Steve Hilton, the British-born Republican candidate for California governor, is trying to turn voter frustration and California’s unusual election rules into a pathway to the general election, with early returns showing him in contention for second place, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The top-two “jungle” primary system means the two highest vote-getters advance regardless of party. With a crowded Democratic field dividing the vote, Hilton was clinging to second place as of Friday evening with 26.3% of ballots tallied, the Journal reported. Xavier Becerra, a former California attorney general and Biden cabinet member, had already secured a spot in the general election, according to the Associated Press. The race between Hilton and billionaire Democrat Tom Steyer, at 21.1%, remained too close to call, with an estimated 32% of votes still uncounted.
Hilton, 56, is positioning himself as an outsider in a state where Democrats have held the governorship for 16 years. “The problems afflicting California are caused by Democrat policies, and more of the same Democrat policies can’t possibly solve them,” he told the Journal on Thursday.
A mid-May poll by the California Public Policy Institute found that 57% of adult residents think the state is headed in the wrong direction, and 76% expect bad economic conditions in the coming year. The state budget has grown 92% over the past decade, according to the Journal, while outside government, healthcare and education, the state has shed jobs since 2022.
Hilton’s policy agenda includes eliminating state income taxes for individuals earning less than $100,000 and imposing a flat 7.5% tax on income above that level. California’s top marginal rate is currently 13.3%. He said the revenue loss would be offset by returning state spending to prepandemic levels. He also promised to bring gasoline prices to $3 per gallon by easing regulations on oil refineries and allowing more drilling, though he specified no timeline. To improve the business climate, he said regulations would vanish unless explicitly renewed.
Hilton rose to prominence as a strategist for the U.K. Conservative Party under Prime Minister David Cameron, known for unorthodox style — wearing T-shirts in Downing Street and promoting ideas such as abolishing maternity leave and all consumer rights legislation. A character inspired by Hilton on the British satire “The Thick Of It” held “thought circles” and said lines like “Let’s imagineer the narrative.” Hilton renounced his British citizenship in 2025.
His campaign has attracted support from billionaires including Tim Draper, Chris Larsen and Rupert Murdoch, each of whom contributed the $39,200 individual maximum. President Trump’s April endorsement boosted Hilton’s profile in the primary, but could become a liability if he advances. Polls show roughly three-fourths of California voters disapprove of Trump, and his immigration policies are particularly unpopular in a state where 27% of the population is foreign-born and an estimated 3.3 million residents live with at least one family member who is an undocumented immigrant.
Dan Schnur, a professor at the University of Southern California and former spokesman for Republican Gov. Pete Wilson, told the Journal that Hilton had displayed impressive political skills during the primary. “But this is California,” Schnur said. “It’s going to be a long, long shot for anyone with an ‘R’ after their name.”
Hilton has done little to distance himself from Trump. He declined to identify any issues on which he disagrees with the president. “I’m not always looking for points of disagreement with people,” he told the Journal. “I think it’s going to be very helpful to have a governor who’s got a good relationship with the federal administration.”
Early ballot counts show Republican candidates on track to win fewer than 40% of total votes in the gubernatorial primary, the Journal reported. No Republican has won a statewide race in California since Arnold Schwarzenegger was re-elected in 2006.