Republican Steve Hilton is gaining on Democrat Xavier Becerra in the race for California governor, according to a new poll released less than three months before the general election.
Becerra leads Hilton 49% to 41% among likely California voters in a survey conducted by David Wolfson, a national pollster who works at Columbia University’s Political Analytics graduate program. Nearly 10% remain undecided on either candidate.
Becerra’s 8-point lead is a considerably narrower margin compared to a prior poll conducted by the University of California, Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies, which showed him with an 18-point advantage over his Republican counterpart earlier this month.
The latest poll shows Becerra falling below the 50% mark for the first time in the head-to-head race, suggesting the Democratic nominee could fail to secure majority support from California voters come Election Day in November.
Hilton’s confidence in his gubernatorial campaign is surely boosted by the new figures, which he touted on social media.
“Xavier Becerra’s support is collapsing as more and more Californians learn about his horrific record as HHS Secretary, sending thousands of Latino kids into the clutches of child sex and labor traffickers,” Hilton told the California Post, which obtained the poll.
Becerra led the Department of Health and Human Services for four years under former President Joe Biden. Before his administration role, he served as California’s attorney general for a single term and represented his state in the House for 24 years.
Meanwhile, this is Hilton’s first foray into U.S. politics. Previously, the British-American conservative commentator was a Fox News host and a senior strategist for former British Prime Minister David Cameron.
A poll released by the Public Policy Institute of California one month after the June 2 gubernatorial primary showed Becerra holding a 25-point lead over Hilton, with 61% to 36%. Hilton has now cut his opponent’s lead by more than half in the new poll.
“He thinks he’s going to coast to victory as part of the corrupt Sacramento machine,” Hilton said of Becerra, “but this poll shows that Californians have had enough and are now rising up to throw out the insiders and vote for the change we so desperately need.”
STEVE HILTON GAINS GROUND IN CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR’S RACE BUT BECERRA MAINTAINS LEAD: POLL
Until they face off on Nov. 3, the two candidates will have to finish making their cases to voters.
Wolfson surveyed 912 registered voters in California from Aug. 14 to 16, with a margin of error of 3.3 percentage points.