The history of California governor election results runs from Peter Burnett’s 1849 victory through 40 governors to the 2026 primary that advanced Democrat Xavier Becerra and Republican Steve Hilton to a November runoff. The arc moves through fluid mid-19th-century partisanship, a Progressive breakthrough in 1910, decades of Republican dominance broken by Depression-era Democrats, Ronald Reagan’s 1966 landslide, a 2003 recall that produced Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, and a Democratic grip on the office that has held since 2011.
Early Statehood Results, 1849–1910
Peter Burnett took office as California’s first governor in 1849. The decades that followed saw Democrats, Republicans, and minor-party candidates rotate through the office. John Bigler won as a Democrat and served from 1852 to 1856. J. Neely Johnson of the nativist American (Know-Nothing) Party held the office from 1856 to 1858. Republican Leland Stanford won in 1862, and Frederick Low followed on the Union Party ticket from 1863 to 1867.1California State Library. Governors of California By the late 19th century the Southern Pacific Railroad dominated state politics, and that dominance set up the Progressive revolt of 1910.
Hiram Johnson’s 1910 Win
Hiram Johnson, a Republican reformer tied to the Lincoln-Roosevelt Republican League, won the 1910 GOP nomination and the general election on an anti-railroad platform.2American Heritage. Diary of Hiram Johnson He took office on January 3, 1911, and used his first term to establish the initiative, referendum, and recall — the same recall mechanism that would later be used against Gray Davis and Gavin Newsom.3National Governors Association. Hiram Warren Johnson Johnson was reelected in 1914 as a Progressive, then won a U.S. Senate seat in 1916.
Republican Streak and the 1934 Sinclair Upset
Every California governor from William Stephens (1917–1923) through Frank Merriam (1934–1939) was a Republican.4National Governors Association. Former Governors – California The sharpest challenge came in 1934, when socialist novelist Upton Sinclair won the Democratic primary with more votes than all his opponents combined, running on his “End Poverty in California” platform.5University of Washington. The 1934 Governor’s Race
The general election became what historians call “the Campaign of the Century.” Hollywood studios produced fake newsreels attacking Sinclair, and the Los Angeles Times ran a staged photograph pulled from the film Wild Boys of the Road.6PBS SoCal. The Socialist Who Won a Democratic Primary Incumbent Frank Merriam won with 49% to Sinclair’s 38%, with third-party candidate Raymond Haight taking 13%.5University of Washington. The 1934 Governor’s Race In 1938, EPIC-aligned state senator Culbert Olson became the first Democrat elected governor of California since 1894. Turnout that year hit 66.8% of eligible adults and 74.7% of registered voters, a state record.7Public Policy Institute of California. Governors Election Just the Facts Olson lost his 1942 reelection bid.
Warren, Knight, and the Mid-Century
Earl Warren, a former district attorney and a Republican, defeated Olson in 1942 and won three terms, serving from 1943 to 1953 before his appointment as Chief Justice of the United States.7Public Policy Institute of California. Governors Election Just the Facts Republican Goodwin Knight succeeded him and held the office from 1953 to 1959.1California State Library. Governors of California
Pat Brown, Nixon, and Reagan
Democrat Edmund G. “Pat” Brown won the governorship in 1958. In 1962 he faced former Vice President Richard Nixon, who had been urged to run after his narrow 1960 presidential loss. Brown won reelection, with both campaigns later agreeing the Cuban Missile Crisis in the final weeks had blunted the appetite for change.8Los Angeles Times. Reflecting on the 1962 Governor’s Race
Four years later the result flipped hard. Ronald Reagan won the 1966 Republican primary with nearly two-thirds of the vote and then beat the incumbent Brown by close to one million votes, campaigning on law and order, welfare reform, and the Berkeley protests.9Politico. California Republicans Nominate Reagan for Governor Reagan served from 1967 to 1975.
Jerry Brown, the Republican Interlude, and the Realignment
Pat Brown’s son, Edmund G. “Jerry” Brown Jr., won the 1974 election and served two terms from 1975 to 1983. Republicans then held the office for 16 straight years: George Deukmejian from 1983 to 1991, and Pete Wilson from 1991 to 1999.4National Governors Association. Former Governors – California
Wilson’s results tell the realignment story in numbers. In 1990 he won the governorship with 47% of the Hispanic vote. After he campaigned for Proposition 187 in 1994, Hispanic support for the Republican gubernatorial candidate dropped to 25% that year and to 17% by 1998. Researchers documented a roughly 30-point Hispanic swing against the GOP between 1991 and 2001, and the mid-1990s mark the point when long-term Democratic dominance of the office was cemented.10Cato Institute. Proposition 187 Turned California Blue Democrat Gray Davis won in 1998 and took office in 1999.
The 2003 Recall and Schwarzenegger’s 2006 Reelection
On October 7, 2003, California held only the second gubernatorial recall election in its history. The ballot asked voters whether to remove Davis and, if so, which of 135 qualified replacement candidates should take over. The field included action-film star Arnold Schwarzenegger, Lieutenant Governor Cruz Bustamante, and state senator Tom McClintock.11California Secretary of State. Candidates to Succeed the Governor Davis was recalled 57% to 43%, and Schwarzenegger won the replacement contest with roughly 42% of the vote.12CNN. 2003 California Recall Exit Polls He became the 38th governor of California.
In 2006, Schwarzenegger won reelection with roughly 57% to Democrat Phil Angelides’s 38%.13San Francisco Chronicle. Schwarzenegger Easily Beats Angelides to Win14NPR. 15Politico. 2018 California Governor Election Results
In September 2021, Newsom faced the second gubernatorial recall ever to reach a California ballot. It failed by 61.9% to 38.1%, with 7,944,092 votes to keep him in office and 4,894,473 to remove him, a 23.8-point margin certified by the Secretary of State on October 22, 2021.16NBC News. California Governor Recall Results17CalMatters. California Recall Election Results All active registered voters had received mail-in ballots under pandemic-era procedures.
The 2026 Primary and November Matchup
The June 2, 2026, primary, run under the top-two system that California voters approved as Proposition 14 in June 2010, advanced one Democrat and one Republican to the general election.18California Secretary of State. Primary Elections in California Unofficial results as of late June showed Democrat Xavier Becerra leading with about 28.1% (2,590,646 ballots), followed by Republican Steve Hilton at 24.7% (2,276,043). Democrat Tom Steyer finished third at 22.8% (2,109,692), and Republican Chad Bianco fourth at 10.2% (941,221). Democrats Katie Porter, Matt Mahan, and Antonio Villaraigosa also ran but none cleared 5%.19California Secretary of State. 2026 Governor Primary Returns The crowded Democratic field raised the prospect of a shutout in which vote-splitting leaves the dominant party off the November ballot, an outcome narrowly avoided.20CalMatters. California Primary Election Top Two
Early general-election polling favors Becerra. A UC Berkeley IGS/Los Angeles Times poll in late May 2026 put him ahead 52% to 31% among registered voters, with 82% of Democrats behind Becerra and 84% of Republicans behind Hilton.21Los Angeles Times. Becerra Heads Toward November Election With Major Edge Over Hilton A later Kreate Strategies poll showed 58% to 33%.22270toWin. 2026 Governor Polls – California Statewide voter registration stands at 45% Democratic, 25% Republican, and 23% no party preference.23Public Policy Institute of California. California Voters and the Top-Two Primary No Republican has won the governorship since 2006, and the November 2026 result will test whether that streak holds.