California Primary Election
Tuesday, June 2, 2026 · Election has passed
U.S. House, U.S. Senate, Governor, statewide offices
What’s being decided
A primary election determines which candidates advance to the November general election. Voters in each party select their nominee, and the winners face each other in the fall.
California holds an top-two primary — all candidates appear on a single ballot and the top two advance regardless of party.
Candidates
Governor
Democratic
Xavier Becerra served as U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services under President Biden from 2021 to 2025. Before that he served as California Attorney General from 2017 to 2021, leading more than 100 lawsuits against the Trump administration. He represented a Los Angeles district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1993 to 2017. He is running for governor as California Governor Gavin Newsom is term-limited, in a state where a Democrat is heavily favored.
Republican
Steve Hilton is a British-American political commentator and author who served as a senior advisor to British Prime Minister David Cameron from 2010 to 2012. He moved to California and became a Fox News host and commentator. He is the Trump-endorsed Republican candidate for California governor in 2026, running in a state where Republicans have not won a statewide race since 2006. He describes himself as a populist outsider who would shake up California's political establishment.
Voter information
Registration deadline
October 19, 2026 (15 days before the November 3 general)
You can register and vote on Election Day at your polling place.
Source: California Secretary of State