Xavier Becerra, a Democrat and former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, is running for California governor in the Nov. 3, 2026, general election.

He faces Republican Steve Hilton.

Becerra has made the cost of living a central campaign theme. On his campaign website, he said he would "take on the cost of living head-on by standing up to price gouging and unjustified rate hikes …" He also pledged to expand help with childcare and use state power to lower prices.

The California Chamber of Commerce has endorsed Becerra. The AFL-CIO, AFSCME Local 3299, California Young Democrats and Planned Parenthood of San Diego, Riverside, Imperial have also endorsed him, according to endorsement data on BallotReady.

Candidate information

  • Born: Jan. 26, 1958, in Sacramento
  • Education: Bachelor's degree in economics, Stanford University, 1980; study abroad, University of Salamanca; law degree, Stanford University, 1984
  • Party: Democratic
  • Family background: Son of Mexican immigrant parents; first in his family to graduate from college

Experience and public service

Becerra served 24 years in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing California from 1993 to 2017, and chaired the House Democratic Caucus from 2013 to 2017, according to the U.S. House History, Art & Archives.

Before Congress, he served in the California State Assembly representing the 59th District from 1990 to 1992. He worked as a deputy attorney general for California from 1987 to 1990. He began his legal career as an attorney at Legal Services Agency from 1984 to 1987.

Gov. Jerry Brown appointed Becerra as California attorney general on Jan. 24, 2017. According to his Wikipedia biography, Becerra was the first Latino to serve as both California attorney general and U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services. During his tenure as attorney general, he filed 122 lawsuits against the first Trump administration, according to the same biography.

Becerra served as U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services from 2021 to 2025.

On the issues

The following positions are drawn from Becerra's campaign website and social media responses.

Energy and affordability: Becerra said bill affordability would be central to his energy policy, with a focus on low- and middle-income families. He said he wants stronger oversight of utilities and pledged to cut pollution and emissions while lowering household energy costs.

Disaster preparedness: Becerra said he would push for investments in wildfire prevention, flood control and seismic retrofits. He said he would strengthen early warning systems and improve evacuation planning, with emergency communications reaching residents across languages, abilities and income levels.

Healthcare: Becerra said he has advocated for single-payer healthcare since his early years in Congress. He said he wants to strengthen Medi-Cal for vulnerable families and pursue cost-relief programs for middle-income families.

Housing: Becerra said he would treat housing as essential infrastructure and push to increase production by speeding up approvals and reducing costs. He said he would invest in affordable housing, protect renters and help first-time buyers.

Technology and AI: Becerra said California should accelerate its lead on AI safety. He called for "real guardrails on companies racing toward superintelligence before anyone's proven they can control it."

Endorsements

Xavier Becerra’s campaign lists endorsements from Gavin Newsom, Kamala Harris, Adam Schiff, Alex Padilla, Rob Bonta and numerous state legislators and local officials. Organizational supporters include the California Democratic Party, California Chamber of Commerce, California Medical Association, California YIMBY, Equality California and Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California.

Labor endorsements reported by the campaign include SEIU California, the California Teachers Association, California Professional Firefighters, United Farm Workers, the California School Employees Association and the State Building and Construction Trades Council of California. The list also names Democratic clubs, education leaders and environmental justice advocates across the state.

Candidate responses were collected through BallotReady questionnaires and the candidate's campaign website and social media accounts.