The California Republican Party left its convention on Sunday without endorsing a candidate for governor after Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and former host Steve Hilton both fell short of the 60 percent threshold needed to win the party’s backing. The gathering at the Sheraton San Diego Resort ended with the party still split over who should carry its banner into the midterm election on Tuesday, June 2.
A candidate needed at least 600 votes from delegates to secure the endorsement, but neither Republican reached that mark. Bianco said he was surprised by how close the vote was between him and Hilton and insisted the race is far from over. “We’re very confident we'll be occupying the governor's office in January,” he said.
The result came after a convention built around the theme “Turning the tide, together,” and it echoed what happened to Democrats in February, when the California Democratic convention also ended without a gubernatorial endorsement. That earlier gathering featured eight candidates before Eric Swalwell suspended his campaign on Sunday amid sexual assault allegations.
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Hilton said he was not surprised by the outcome and dismissed Bianco as a party “insider.” He said the vote reflected broader momentum beyond the convention floor. “I think the real message is what's happening out across the state. I'm the leading candidate in this race,” Hilton said, pointing to recent polls and the endorsement from President Donald Trump.
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The lack of an endorsement does not end the race, but it leaves Republicans heading into June without the party unity endorsements are supposed to signal. For now, the field is down to Bianco and Hilton, and the answer to who is running for California governor 2026 republican is simple: both are, and neither left San Diego with the party’s formal blessing.
