A tough-on-crime Republican sheriff who was a supporter of President Donald Trump in last year’s election on Monday launched a campaign for California governor.
Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco announced his candidacy at an event Monday in Riverside, California, about 50 miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles, in the 2026 race to succeed term-limited Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.
“As Californians we want leadership that actually cares about the cost of living …and leaders who will do something about it,” Bianco said in his address, according to prepared excerpts.
He emphasized that “we want homes we can afford. We want air conditioning when it’s hot, not rolling blackouts. We want water for the crops and animals that feed us. We want the opportunity to achieve the California Dream, not be prevented from it because of red tape and regulation from government. We want honesty and transparency from our elected officials. We want lower taxes and less government waste. We want sanity restored and common sense to prevail.”
Bianco, a vocal critic of Newsom and other state Democratic leaders when it comes to the issues of crime and punishment, was one of the leaders who helped push California’s Proposition 36 ballot measure to a landslide victory in last November’s elections. The measure, which took effect in December, mandates stiffer penalties and longer sentences in California for certain drug and theft crimes.
“I am running for Governor because our beautiful state – which I absolutely love – is heading down the wrong track and has been for years. Everyone knows it, except those sitting in the Sacramento echo chamber. For decades the party in complete control of our state government has tried the same failed ideas and implemented the same failed policies,” Bianco argued, as he took aim at Newsom and the Democratic majorities in the state legislature.
Bianco, who has worked in law enforcement for more than three decades, was first elected sheriff in 2018. He’s been openly flirting with a 2026 gubernatorial run since at least last spring.
It’s been nearly two decades since a Republican won statewide office in heavily blue California. You have to go all the way back to former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s 2006 re-election victory.
There has been plenty of speculation since former Vice President Kamala Harris’ election defeat last November to Trump regarding her next political move, with the two potential options likely being launching a 2026 gubernatorial run in her home state of California or seeking the presidency again in 2028.
Harris served as San Francisco district attorney, California attorney general and U.S. senator before becoming vice president.
Sources in the former vice president’s political orbit say no decisions have been made about any next steps.
The Democrats’ field for governor in the heavily blue-leaning state is already crowded.
Among the more than half-dozen candidates already running for governor are Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, a Harris ally, and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.
Former Rep. Katie Porter, who unsuccessfully ran for the Democratic Senate nomination last year, has expressed interest in launching a campaign.
Additionally, former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, who served in Congress and as California attorney general before joining the Biden administration, is also seen as a potential contender.
Former Fox News Channel host and conservative commentator Steve Hilton is considering a Republican run for California governor.
And one of Trump’s top aides is floating a potential bid for California governor if Harris also runs.
Richard Grenell, a longtime Trump loyalist who is serving as U.S. envoy for special missions in the president’s second administration, told reporters late last week, “If Kamala Harris runs for governor, I believe that she has such baggage and hundreds of millions of dollars in educating the voters of how terrible she is, that it’s a new day in California and that the Republican actually has a shot.”
Grenell, who served as ambassador to Germany and as acting director of national intelligence during Trump’s first term, considered a run for California governor during the 2021 recall election that Newsom eventually ended up easily winning, but he ultimately decided against launching a campaign.
In California, unlike most other states, the top two finishers in a primary, regardless of party affiliation, advance to the general election.
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