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After giving Chad Bianco every chance, I just voted for Steve Hilton

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I have followed this governor’s race as closely as anyone in California Republican politics. I have not endorsed either candidate.

I gave Chad Bianco every opportunity to drive his numbers up. I waited until the last possible moment. I wanted to give Bianco supporters every chance to be proven right.

The numbers never moved enough. And now the calendar has made the decision for all of us.

This week I cast my ballot for Steve Hilton.

I want to be clear about something before I explain why. Steve Hilton himself made the mathematical case in these pages this week. He is a candidate with an obvious stake in the argument. I am not.

I am a longtime strategist with no role in either campaign, no financial interest in the outcome, and no agenda beyond wanting California Republicans to actually compete in November.

Which is precisely why the math troubles me as much as it does.

Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco is a serious candidate for governor. He has led a major law enforcement agency, spent 33 years in public safety, raised millions of dollars, and built a deep, statewide, conservative grassroots network.

At the California Republican Party convention, Bianco received more delegate support than any other candidate — though not enough to secure the party endorsement. He has run a credible race and made a compelling case.

But he is running into the unforgiving math of California’s top-two election system, and the window has now closed.

For a brief moment, there was a scenario where two Republicans might both advance to November. That possibility effectively ended when Eric Swalwell collapsed.

The roughly 15% of the vote he carried did........

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