Large number of voters undecided in governor’s race and about congressional redistricting, new poll finds
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- Former Rep. Katie Porter and conservative commentator Steve Hilton are the only candidates in the 2026 governor’s race to have double-digit support among voters in a new poll.
- Voters are split about a Democratic proposal to redraw the state’s congressional districts that could appear on the ballot in November.
- Large numbers of voters are undecided.
Many voters are undecided in California’s 2026 governor’s race as well as about Democratic efforts to redraw the state’s congressional districts in an effort to counter GOP efforts in other states, according to a new poll released Friday.
In the first public poll since former Vice President Kamala Harris opted to not run for governor, former Democratic Rep. Katie Porter had the support of 18% of registered voters in California, while Republican commentator Steve Hilton had the backing of 12%, according to the Emerson College poll. No other candidate in the sprawling field had double-digit support, and 38% of voters said they were undecided.
The primary will take place June 2. The candidates have yet to start aggressively advertising or reaching out to voters, so these numbers could fluctuate wildly over the next 10 months.
The wide-open race to succeed Gavin Newsom as California governor has attracted a large and diverse field of candidates.
When asked about a special election that could occur in November, voters were split over a proposed Democratic effort to redraw congressional districts. One-third of voters support the effort, a quarter oppose it and 42% were unsure, according to the poll.
Redistricting typically occurs after the once-a-decade census, but California is considering a middecade redrawing of congressional boundaries to counter potential moves by Texas and other GOP states to boost the number of Republicans in the House and keep the GOP in control of Congress.
California state lawmakers are expected to vote on calling a special election about the matter after they return from summer recess Aug. 18.
The poll of 1,000 California voters took place on August 4 and 5, and has 3% margin of error in either direction.
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