Morning Report

5 key moments from California gubernatorial debate

by Jared Gans - 04/23/26 7:05 AM ET

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by Jared Gans - 04/23/26 7:05 AM ET

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In today’s issue:

- California governor primary debate

- Another House vacancy

- Anthropic case amicus brief

- U.K. smoking ban

The top six remaining candidates running for governor of California faced off Wednesday as the primary rapidly approaches and no candidate has emerged as a clear front-runner.

The debate, hosted by NewsNation and The Hill’s parent company Nexstar, came less than two weeks after the race was rocked by allegations of sexual misconduct against former Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.), who had been leading the Democratic field until he dropped out of the race.

The contenders took jabs at each other Wednesday evening as they tried to pick up support from the many voters who remain undecided in the race.

Here’s six top moments from the night.

Democrats agree to back whoever advances

All four Democrats on stage committed to supporting any Democrat who advances to the general election to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom (D).

“Let me put it to you this way, if there’s a Republican in the race, that Republican will be supported by and also supporting Donald Trump,” billionaire businessman Tom Steyer said.

Former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said California needs the “best person” who will fight for the state on issues including housing and health care and can stand up to Trump. He said he will support the Democrat who does so.

California’s top-two electoral system has all candidates compete on the same ballot in the primary regardless of party, with the two best performers advancing to the general election.

Hilton dismisses idea of 2 Republicans advancing

Former Fox News host Steve Hilton brushed off the possibility that he and the other main Republican in the race, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, could take both spots in the general election — even as Democrats have worried about that possibility.

With the Democratic candidates largely splitting the vote in the heavily Democratic state, many polls have shown Hilton and Bianco ahead of the pack, which could force voters to choose between them in November.

But the polls have also shown many voters remain undecided, enough to put one Democrat at least in the top two as the primary gets closer.

Hilton, who is endorsed by President Trump, said he would support a Republican in the general election even if it’s not him, saying the state needs “some balance in our system” after years of Democratic leadership.

Becerra pressed on Swalwell scandal

Swalwell didn’t dominate the debate much in the aftermath of the scandal that doomed his candidacy, but Becerra’s first question of the night was about his former colleague.

Becerra, who has seen a jump in support after Swalwell’s exit, served as House Democratic Caucus chair when Swalwell first joined Congress.

Becerra was asked about rumors floating around about Swalwell years before he was publicly accused of misconduct.

He touted his efforts going after sex trafficking as state attorney general but said the talk about Swalwell was just that until accusations were made.

“You hear rumors all the time about all sorts of things. Rumors are not facts and the caucus, the Democratic caucus, is not a place that adjudicates those things. It’s law enforcement that does,” he said.

Porter addresses criticism of management style

Former Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.) sought to defuse concerns about her leadership style in the aftermath of multiple viral videos showing her berating a staffer and a reporter.

“I apologized that day to that staffer four years ago, and I took responsibility then, and I have taken responsibility since, acknowledging that it was not the right way to treat someone,” she said. “And that is a big contrast to what we have seen other candidates do when they have been called out for misconduct.”

The videos shook up the race when they went public, as Porter was leading her fellow Democrats in several polls before then. She has since fallen back a few points, even with or slightly behind Steyer and Becerra.

“All of my accomplishments have come from my team, and I would say that if somebody is treating you rudely, you should speak up. And that’s what I would want my children to do,” Porter said.

Dems grade Newsom on homelessness

Candidates were asked to grade the outgoing governor on his handling of the one of the top issues facing the state — homelessness.

The candidates’ responses were split largely on party lines, with the Democr