Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: Democrat Xavier Becerra advanced to the general election for California Governor on June 5 after pitching himself as an experienced choice to lead the nation’s most populous state and succeed Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Becerra leaned on his more than 35 years in public office, including as state attorney general and US health secretary, to argue that he was the most qualified candidate in a crowded field. Becerra said in a statement, “We are never backing down. November, here we come.”
His top rivals came down to Republican Steve Hilton, a former Fox News commentator backed by President Donald Trump, and Democrat Tom Steyer, a billionaire climate activist who poured $215 million of his own money into his campaign.
Becerra has vowed to maintain the state’s mantle as a chief antagonist to Trump. As attorney general, he filed more than 120 legal actions against the first Trump administration on everything from immigration to climate policy.
During the campaign, Becerra’s rivals scrutinized his leadership as health secretary during the COVID-19 pandemic and the unaccompanied migrant children crisis in 2021, when Becerra’s Department of Health and Human Services was responsible for shelters where they were housed.
