Becerra could become California’s first Latino governor in 150 years

Xavier Becerra’s best route to becoming California’s first Latino governor in 150 years ran through a primary that showed both his strength and the limits of heritage politics. The late-May Public Policy Institute of California survey put Becerra at 23 percent among likely voters, ahead of Republican Steve Hilton at 20 percent, Tom Steyer at 15 percent, Chad Bianco at 13 percent and Katie Porter at 12 percent.

If Becerra ultimately wins the governor’s office, he would be the first California governor of Mexican ancestry since Romualdo Pacheco, who assumed office on February 27, 1875, after Newton Booth resigned and served until December 9 of that year. The California governor’s office says Pacheco was both the first governor of Mexican ancestry and the first California-born governor, a reminder of how rarely the state’s highest office has reflected its Latino majority.

But Becerra’s appeal among Latino voters is not automatic. The same PPIC survey found that seven in ten likely voters were following the governor’s race very or fairly closely, and about six in ten said they were satisfied with the choices and thought the top-two primary had been mostly a good thing for California since Proposition 14 passed in 2010. That level of attention suggests voters were weighing more than identity, even in a race that could make history.

The June 2 top-two primary forced all candidates onto one ballot regardless of party, and the crowded field had left many Democrats uneasy for months. Some worried that two Republicans could reach the runoff, while slower-than-normal ballot returns kept supporters waiting to see whether one contender would break away. Becerra’s rise also reflected the narrowing of the field as the contest settled around the leading names.

At the same time, his candidacy drew fire from the left. Progressives revived old disputes over immigration, oil-industry donations and healthcare, casting him as an establishment Democrat rather than a breakthrough figure. Amar Shergill, among his critics, called him a “go-along Democrat.” Opponents have also pointed to his record as state attorney general and as President Joe Biden’s health and human services secretary, arguing that his governing record, not his ethnicity, should decide whether Latino voters rally behind him.

That is the larger test in California. Becerra may benefit from the symbolism of a first Latino governor in 150 years, but the race has shown that Latino voters, like other Californians, are sorting candidates through policy, performance and trust, not ancestry alone.