Becerra takes front-runner status in California governor’s race

▪ Becerra’s California surge

▪ FBI picks new targets

▪ Counterterrorism strategy released

▪ Sexual misconduct probes heat up

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Former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra has surged to the head of the pack of Democrats running for California governor as ballots are heading out to voters.

That dynamic was reflected in back-to-back debates on Tuesday and Wednesday night, where Becerra’s competitors repeatedly pounced on the former state attorney general.

“I think everyone’s invoking my name,” he said during the Tuesday debate hosted by CNN. “It’s nice to hear my name.”

Counties in the Golden State needed to send ballots to voters by Monday, allowing people to start dropping off their ballots this week. The debates on Tuesday and Wednesday, which was hosted by NBC Los Angeles, were the final scheduled televised faceoffs before voters head to the polls on June 2.

Becerra’s rise over the past month has been striking but not decisive. After spending most of the race middling in the single digits in polls and behind several other candidates, the former HHS chief benefited more than anyone from the departure of former Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) from the race.

Swalwell, who had started to take a notable lead by the spring, was forced out of the contest last month following multiple accusations of sexual assault against him, which he denied. That further scrambled a field in which no candidate has received more than 25 percent support in a poll and many voters remain undecided.

Billionaire businessman Tom Steyer (D) and former Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.), who trailed close behind Swalwell, seemed most likely to potentially benefit, but Becerra’s stock has risen instead.

He averaged less than 5 percent in the Decision Desk HQ polling tracker less than a month ago but now stands in second place at more than 16 percent, behind Republican Steve Hilton, who has been endorsed by President Trump.

The most recent poll, from the California Democratic Party, showed Becerra tied with Hilton in first at 18 percent each.

Should those numbers hold, the two candidates would emerge from the jungle primary to face off in the general election in deep blue California.

However, another SurveyUSA poll released Friday showed Steyer in second, with 18 percent, 8 points ahead of Becerra — underscoring the fluidity in the race a few weeks from its conclusion.

Steyer is trying to pitch himself as a more progressive alternative to Becerra. He challenged Becerra during the CNN debate on healthcare, noting that the California Medical Association, which Steyer called the “strongest group against single-payer healthcare in the state,” endorsed the former HHS chief.

Porter and San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, who has risen slightly since Swalwell’s exit but remains well behind the leader, also attacked Becerra over his healthcare agenda.

Mahan accused him of doing “nothing” to lower healthcare costs for Californians or stop “fraudulent and wasteful spending” during his time as attorney general.

“Yeah, totally untrue. Man, that sounds like a MAGA talking point,” Becerra pushed back.

“No, it’s just the facts,” Mahan said.

Porter pressed the former health official on whether he really supports single-payer healthcare or just wants all Californians to be covered.

“Hey Katie, the answer there is that Californians don’t care what you call it so long as they have affordable health care that they can use to take their child to the doctor or the hospital,” Becerra responded.

And former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who has remained in the mid-to-low single digits, unveiled a digital ad on Wednesday highlighting criticism that a former Biden administration official made about Becerra.

“Whoever is going to be governor of California will have to stand up to Donald Trump,” Xochitl Hinojosa, a former Justice Department public affairs official, says in the spot. “Can I tell you, after working in Joe Biden’s administration, I do not trust Xavier Becerra to do that.”

One constant in this race has been no candidate clearly breaking through a crowded field, which remains true. But Becerra may be peaking at precisely the right time with Californians starting to cast their votes.

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