California GOP votes to endorse governor pick after Trump backs Hilton

California Republicans will vote this weekend to approve their choice for California governor in the race to succeed term-limited Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.

The vote, this Sunday in San Diego at the annual California GOP convention, comes a week after President Donald Trump took sides between the two major Republican candidates in the race, supporting conservative commentator and former Fox News Channel host Steve Hilton over Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco.

Trump, whose endorsements are extremely influential in the Republican Party primaries, argued in his endorsement statement that California had “gone to hell” and that “Steve can turn things around before it’s too late, and as president, I will help him do it!”

The president’s support for Hilton is expected to pay immediate dividends at the state Republican convention.

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Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton speaks to the press during the Huntington Beach City Attorney Michael Gates press event in Huntington Beach, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Huntington Beach, California. Huntington Beach City Attorney Michael Gates has announced his candidacy for California Attorney General. (Kayla Bartkowski/Los Angeles Times)

“I think it can definitely help rally the base behind a candidate and generate noise and enthusiasm,” Corrin Rankin, chairwoman of the California Republican Party, told Fox News Digital.

Bianco is a loyal Trump supporter who has many friends and support among California Republican insiders. But Trump’s support for Hilton, a top adviser to then-British Prime Minister David Cameron 15 years ago before moving to the United States and becoming a U.S. citizen in 2021, could strengthen him at the Republican Party convention, where support from 60% of delegates is needed to win the party’s endorsement.

But Bianco, the sheriff who recently gained national attention for seizing ballots in Riverside County, appeared defiant.

“For too long, politicians and insiders, from Sacramento to Washington, have tried to choose our leaders for us. That’s not leadership, it’s coronation, and that’s exactly how we ended up with the failed leadership that Californians live with today,” he said in a social media video. “This election belongs to the people, not the political class.”

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Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco speaks during a press conference at the U.S. Capitol on May 15, 2024, in Washington, DC. This week marks National Police Week, during which thousands of police officers from departments across the country travel to Washington, D.C. to honor law enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty. (Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

Trump’s endorsement could have another unintended consequence.

Candidates from both major political parties are running on the same ballot in the left-leaning state’s June primary, with the top two advancing to the November general election.

Some Democrats feared that with nine candidates running, support among Democratic voters would be so divided in the primaries that no candidate would make it to the general election. Hilton and Bianco were the top two candidates in some public opinion polls, giving some Republicans hope for a final showdown between two Republicans.

This scenario may be less likely now, as support for Hilton is expected to increase and support for Bianco to decrease in light of the president’s support. Last week’s polls suggested a rise in Hilton’s power.

“Trump is killing any Republican Party hope of an R-versus-R runoff in the California gubernatorial race,” Rob Pyers of California Target Book, which describes itself as a nonpartisan, nonpartisan political almanac, wrote in a social media post last week.

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Trump’s support for Hilton sent shock waves through the California Republican Party. (Alex Brandon/AP)

But Hilton considered the idea of ​​excluding Democrats from the general election ballot a pipe dream.

“This scenario of two Republicans [making the general election ballot]“I’ve been saying this for months, it’s always been a fantasy,” Hilton said on Fox Business’ “The Bottom Line.” “The idea that the Democratic machine in California was just going to hand the state over to two Republicans was never serious. It’s never going to happen, it’s never going to happen.”

He added: “What was more likely is that actually … you would have two Democrats in the top two and then we won’t have any chance of change. So that really guarantees that we will have a Republican in the top two.”

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No Republican has won a statewide election in California since the governor took office. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s re-election in 2006.

And with the president’s approval rating in California hovering in the 30s, Trump’s support likely won’t do Hilton any favors if he runs in the November election.