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California Governor primary debate.....7 candidates Dems & Repub.....on CNN now. (Original Post) a kennedy May 5 OP
Kick. IcyPeas May 5 #1
Me too, do NOT care for him...... a kennedy May 5 #2
This Hilton guy doesn't sound like he was born in the USA. beaglelover May 5 #3
Trump endorsed too. I guess "some" immigrants are okay. 😉 IcyPeas May 5 #6
This message was self-deleted by its author a kennedy May 5 #7
Pretty sure he is South African. Silver Gaia May 5 #8
British- American. Fox news contributor too. IcyPeas May 5 #9
Thank you. Silver Gaia May 5 #10
Hilton came here from U.K. 12years ago. He said. oasis May 5 #19
LOL nbsmom May 5 #26
Hilton is a former advisor to David Cameron and worked with Nigel Farage on Brexit. nbsmom May 5 #29
Agree about mind reeling... Silver Gaia May 6 #44
This is unbearable. Just awful. EVERY CANDIDATE starts every topic with "ONLY I" Maru Kitteh May 5 #4
Annoying I know..... a kennedy May 5 #5
Good. Sheriff Bianco stole 650,000 ballots. Becerra suing him. IcyPeas May 5 #11
Just Tuned In DET May 5 #12
But I am a Californian, and I agree. Silver Gaia May 5 #14
And that other guy... Mahan? Mayor of San Jose? IcyPeas May 5 #21
Even better -- he's propped up by money from Peter Thiel and Sergey Brin nbsmom May 5 #27
Never Heard of Him Before DET May 5 #31
Becerra is coming off as calm, cool, and collected. Silver Gaia May 5 #13
Yes. He has the best bio/background too. IcyPeas May 5 #16
And weak. awesomerwb1 May 5 #17
Nope obamanut2012 May 6 #39
Yes awesomerwb1 May 6 #42
Becerra is holding his own fending off attacks. oasis May 5 #20
I can't stand Hilton LogDog75 May 5 #15
He worked for Fox news. They all must undergo training to be loud and obnoxious IcyPeas May 5 #18
Villaraigosa and Porter dissing Becerra 🙄 IcyPeas May 5 #22
And the m.agats having a love fest awesomerwb1 May 5 #23
They're ganging up on Becerra now! Silver Gaia May 5 #24
About what, please? Cha May 5 #33
Chad Bianco said "It's about time we put a felon in the whitehouse" IcyPeas May 5 #25
In Texas, sheriffs and constables are allowed to campaign and endorse while in uniform! And use their title! LeftInTX May 5 #28
What I'm getting is that Silver Gaia May 5 #30
No, Steyer or Becerra vs Hilton obamanut2012 May 6 #41
I thought Hilton sucked. I did not like him at all. Silver Gaia May 6 #43
Had to share this nbsmom May 5 #32
As a mere observer in this race, I don't know who I'd vote for... Mark.b2 May 5 #34
Agree. I am disappointed she didn't run. Silver Gaia May 6 #37
I thought Steyer seemed strongest. SleeplessinSoCal May 5 #35
Even a weak Democrat will win in the general. The problem right now JI7 May 6 #36
Agree. Silver Gaia May 6 #45
Steyer? Really? Silver Gaia May 6 #38
I dont want to see Hilton in the top two. Silver Gaia May 6 #40
I don't suppose you remember how Steyer was buying endorsements during his run for President in 2020 nbsmom May 6 #47
According to RealClear Polling LogDog75 May 6 #46
SurveyUSA is not a legitimate pollster nbsmom May 6 #48

IcyPeas

(25,875 posts)
1. Kick.
Tue May 5, 2026, 09:11 PM
May 5

Watching.

Sometimes I just dislike someone for no apparent reason...
.
.
.
.
.
.
(Steyer)


Response to IcyPeas (Reply #6)

nbsmom

(661 posts)
26. LOL
Tue May 5, 2026, 10:54 PM
May 5

He's an ex-Brexit advisor. Don't you love how he's so quick to suggest "drill baby drill" and "let's build single-family homes with California forests"?

nbsmom

(661 posts)
29. Hilton is a former advisor to David Cameron and worked with Nigel Farage on Brexit.
Tue May 5, 2026, 10:59 PM
May 5

The mind reels at the thought that he's been normalized by these random "polls."

Maru Kitteh

(32,027 posts)
4. This is unbearable. Just awful. EVERY CANDIDATE starts every topic with "ONLY I"
Tue May 5, 2026, 09:27 PM
May 5

“I’m the ONLY candidate . . . blah blah blah ….. … .. . lather, rinse, repeat.

DET

(2,617 posts)
12. Just Tuned In
Tue May 5, 2026, 10:10 PM
May 5

Katie Porter seems kind of condescending towards Becerra. I can’t believe Hilton and the sheriff are even up there. Becerra seems to be holding his own; sounds reasonable and down to earth. I like him (not that it matters since I don’t live in California).

nbsmom

(661 posts)
27. Even better -- he's propped up by money from Peter Thiel and Sergey Brin
Tue May 5, 2026, 10:55 PM
May 5

Mahan might as well have an "R" after his name. He's also taking credit for stuff his predecessor did, since he's only been mayor for about 5 minutes.

DET

(2,617 posts)
31. Never Heard of Him Before
Tue May 5, 2026, 11:01 PM
May 5

Mahan seems to have a solid background, but his debating skills seem a little weak (IMHO).

awesomerwb1

(5,161 posts)
42. Yes
Wed May 6, 2026, 01:38 AM
May 6

Hilton even stole Becerra's time when Becerra was the one who was asked the question (about Becerra's chief of staff pleading guilty). Becerra said nothing which kind of sucked. That said, I hope he does win. That Hilton guy is a charlatan.

LogDog75

(1,395 posts)
15. I can't stand Hilton
Tue May 5, 2026, 10:14 PM
May 5

He's got what the British call a "posh" accent meaning upper crust. Also, he continues to smirk as and after he talks kind of like Tucker Carlson does.

Silver Gaia

(5,441 posts)
24. They're ganging up on Becerra now!
Tue May 5, 2026, 10:33 PM
May 5

He still seems calm.

I think we are behind everyone else, though.

LeftInTX

(34,871 posts)
28. In Texas, sheriffs and constables are allowed to campaign and endorse while in uniform! And use their title!
Tue May 5, 2026, 10:58 PM
May 5

It's wierd....But I've got a mailer right in front of me!

Silver Gaia

(5,441 posts)
43. I thought Hilton sucked. I did not like him at all.
Wed May 6, 2026, 02:05 AM
May 6

So, that's what I saw, what we wll saw at my house, regardless of polls. That is obviously different. And extremely scary.

Mark.b2

(818 posts)
34. As a mere observer in this race, I don't know who I'd vote for...
Tue May 5, 2026, 11:20 PM
May 5

None stands out above the others.

Too bad Harris decided not to jump in. It would be hers to lose.

SleeplessinSoCal

(10,441 posts)
35. I thought Steyer seemed strongest.
Tue May 5, 2026, 11:54 PM
May 5

And estimating that Hilton will make top two, a strong voiced counter will be essential, IMHO.

Plus he's an outsider. That might be the best counter considering the hole CA Dems appear to be in. Porter came off better than I expected. She was my rep. I campaigned for her. But then dropping out to run for Senate turned me off.

 

JI7

(93,908 posts)
36. Even a weak Democrat will win in the general. The problem right now
Wed May 6, 2026, 12:05 AM
May 6

is that Republicans might be the top 2 so we end up with an with both Republicans.

As long as one Democrat can make ut in the top 2 we will win.

But Steyer having a strong voice will help more after the election and the shit we have to deal with from Trump and other Republicans.

Silver Gaia

(5,441 posts)
38. Steyer? Really?
Wed May 6, 2026, 12:27 AM
May 6

I liked him BEFORE this debate, but he turned off all 3 voters in this house tonight.

Silver Gaia

(5,441 posts)
40. I dont want to see Hilton in the top two.
Wed May 6, 2026, 12:29 AM
May 6

He was awful. I haven't seen him polling that high overall.

nbsmom

(661 posts)
47. I don't suppose you remember how Steyer was buying endorsements during his run for President in 2020
Wed May 6, 2026, 02:12 PM
May 6

I missed the Indivisible Zoom call on Monday, but apparently it was full of misinformation and dogpiling on Porter and Becerra. Coming so soon after Our Revolution's endorsement, it feels like some money has changed hands. That is beyond depressing because that means both of those supposedly progressive organizations have lost all credibility going forward.

The polling leading up to Swalwell's exit is extraordinarily suspicious, given that it normalizes the prospect of at least one Republican candidate (and possibly two), instead of examining why an ex-Brexit advisor like Steve Hilton would want to run for governor, or what makes Chad Bianco, with his abysmal clearance rate (Riverside County ranks at 57th of 57 counties), qualified to run the world's 4th-largest economy. So instead of the Democratic candidates wiping the floor with the two execrable examples of Team Red candidates, they're fighting over who gets the "one spot" on the ticket in November.

The toplines of the CBS /YouGov polls shared last week showed that there is still a ceiling for both Republican candidates: the "would not consider" numbers for both Hilton and Bianco still sit at 48%, and they're only going to go down when people realize that Hilton cannot even admit that Biden won in 2020, and Bianco is a racist who doesn't believe in the 14th amendment.

Swalwell is NOT a "good billionaire." He's flailing right now because he is realizing he'll have spent more than Meg Whitman did in 2010 (when she lost to Jerry Brown), and he won't have the cakewalk Adam Schiff had in 2024. And maybe you have also noticed how Mahan sounds a little like JD Vance (to be expected, since he's also propped up by Peter Thiel money).

The only two candidates who are capable of getting anything done in Sacramento in the near term are the two attorneys, Becerra and Porter. And as much as I really respect Porter, Becerra is the stronger choice, both because he has taken on the special interest, he's actually won statewide, and he knows how to get stuff done in Sacramento.

LogDog75

(1,395 posts)
46. According to RealClear Polling
Wed May 6, 2026, 01:41 PM
May 6

As of May 3rd, KGTV-TV/SurveyUSA poll shows the following candidate percentages.

Hilton 20
Steyer 18
Bianco 12
Becerra 10
Porter 8
Mahan 7
Vilaraigosa 5
Thurmond 2
https://www.realclearpolling.com/latest-polls/governor

The total for the candidates above is 82% meaning there is 18% of the votes belonging to minor candidates or the undecided. IMO, if any Democratic candidate isn't above 10% by May 15th, they should drop out and endorse a Democratic candidate that has more than 10% of the vote. Using the above as an example, that would mean between Porter, Mahan, Villaraigosa, and Thurmond would drop out and the total percentage, 22%, would go to either Steyer or Becerra. If those votes split 50/50 Steyer would be at 29% and Becerra would be at 21% and that would eliminate Hilton and Bianco.

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