By Michael Katz | Thursday, 28 May 2026 10:22 PM EDT
Xavier Becerra, Health and Human Services secretary under former President Joe Biden, has widened his lead in California’s gubernatorial race ahead of Tuesday’s primary, a new poll shows.
The poll of 1,707 California adults, conducted May 14-18 by the Public Policy Institute of California, revealed Becerra at 23%—up 4 percentage points from an Emerson College poll conducted before the final gubernatorial debate earlier this month. The survey had a margin of error of +/- 3.2 percentage points.
Republican Steve Hilton trailed Becerra with 20%, followed by Democrat billionaire Tom Steyer at 15%, Republican Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco at 13%, and former Democrat Rep. Katie Porter at 12%. The top two candidates will advance to the general election in November.
During a recent debate, Becerra faced questions about his stance on a single-payer healthcare system. A proposed model would replace private health insurance with government-run universal coverage.
Becerra has stated he supports the proposal despite receiving an endorsement and campaign donations from the California Medical Association, which has opposed the policy. The group’s president reported that Becerra assured members “very clearly” he would not support a single-payer system.
“When it comes to single-payer, you went and talked to the largest lobbying group in the state of California, and the head of that group said you very clearly indicated you were against single-payer,” Steyer told Becerra during the debate.
“And they didn’t just say it—they endorsed you and gave you the maximum amount of money a candidate could receive. So are they lying?”
Porter accused Becerra of lacking a “revenue plan” for the state.
Becerra dismissed the criticism, citing his experience on the House Ways and Means Committee during his time in Congress. He proposed tax code changes to ensure “everyone pays their fair share.”
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
