Steve Hilton, a Republican, is running for California Governor in the November 2026 general election against Democrat Xavier Becerra, having advanced from the June 2026 top-two primary with about 25% of the vote. British-born and educated at Oxford, Hilton worked in marketing and branding before serving as Director of Strategy for UK Prime Minister David Cameron from roughly 2010 to 2012, where he was credited with helping “detoxify” the Conservative Party’s image but also drew press nicknames like “the shaven-headed Svengali” for his unconventional style and reluctance to give interviews. On leaving Downing Street, he publicly called for a much smaller civil service and further welfare cuts, prompting a pointed public rebuke from a UK Treasury minister who said most departing staffers “bring in a cake” rather than issue parting-shot memos.
Hilton moved to California for an academic sabbatical at Stanford, later becoming a Fox News host from 2017 to 2023 on “The Next Revolution with Steve Hilton,” where he drew criticism at one point for not challenging a guest’s on-air comments affirming family-separation practices under the first Trump administration. He went on to found a California policy organization before launching his gubernatorial campaign.
Hilton has campaigned on affordability and reducing the cost of living, pledging to “throw out the insiders, cut your costs, and fix our schools,” while calling for rolling back state renewable-energy purchase mandates and allowing more natural gas production, alongside addressing homelessness and state government reform. He has been endorsed by President Trump and chose former Democratic state senator Gloria Romero, who switched parties in 2024, as his running mate for Lieutenant Governor.
