Xavier Becerra enters California governor’s race, citing ‘break glass moment’

Former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, who as California attorney general was a constant legal antagonist of Donald Trump during his first term as president, announced on Wednesday that he’s running for governor in 2026 when term limits prevent Gavin Newsom from seeking a third term.

Becerra said he’s jumping in at a time when California is facing threats, including climate change, a housing affordability crisis and constant hostility from the Trump administration.

“This is the place to be. This is the time to do it. It’s a ‘break glass moment’ and I think I bring the experiences to help build us out of this mess,” Becerra told KQED.

As President Joe Biden’s choice to be health secretary, Becerra oversaw an agency with a sprawling array of responsibilities, from protecting food and drug safety to managing the Medicare and Medicaid programs and helping to implement the nation’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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On Tuesday, Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi’s office confirmed the Trump administration will shut down San Francisco’s HHS office this spring as thousands of layoffs begin amid widespread cuts to the federal health agency.

Mayra Alvarez, president at the Children’s Partnership, a statewide advocacy organization focused on child health equity, has worked with Becerra for nearly 20 years in Washington and Sacramento. She has not endorsed anyone in the race but said that as HHS Secretary Becerra played a critical role in strengthening the nation’s health care.

“Becerra really took ownership of ensuring that laws like the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid were as strong as possible, particularly in the aftermath of the pandemic and coming out of the public health emergency,” Alvarez said.

Becerra, who was California’s top law enforcement official when Biden nominated him, was not an obvious choice to run HHS, which has a fiscal year 2024 budget of $1.7 trillion, accounting for 25% of the nation’s entire federal spending. Although he helped implement the Biden administration’s COVID-19 policies, including vaccine distribution, Becerra was often in the background, especially compared with Dr. Anthony Fauci.

“His biggest challenge is that he did not serve in a particularly high profile way during his time in Biden’s cabinet, so he’d come into this race with a decided name recognition disadvantage,” said Dan Schnur, a USC political communications professor.

That said, Schnur notes Becerra will benefit from his years as California’s AG.

“During his time as attorney general, he got to know a lot of people statewide and a lot of different constituencies so his base might be less demographic and geographic than it is ideological,” Schnur said, adding Becerra’s true strength won’t be known until former Vice President Kamala Harris decides if she’s running.

Becerra said he’s in the race no matter who else jumps in.

“I’ve put my sneakers on the starting block, and I’m in,” he said.

Becerra, 67, is leaning on his resume in hopes of distinguishing himself from a growing field of Democrats.

“What I think I bring to this position as governor that no other candidate can is the executive experience of having been in the heat of this — in the kitchen at the hottest point — and having to deliver results,” he said.

Beccera, who sued the Trump administration 120 times as attorney general, often successfully, enters a crowded Democratic field with Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, former Rep. Katie Porter, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, former state legislative leader Toni Atkins and state Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond. Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, a conservative Republican, has also declared.

Harris, who returned to California when Trump was sworn in, has said she’ll decide whether to run by the end of summer. Becerra isn’t waiting.

“It’s California’s time to rise, and it makes no difference to me how many people are in the race. For me, the competition is — can I get to enough people to explain how my experience and my gut are going to serve as well as governor,” Beccera said.

In an interview with KQED, Becerra said he didn’t necessarily have any “big ideas” to set him apart from the other candidates, saying he’s offering leadership that is prepared, focused and measured.

At a time when many Democrats say they want a fighter who will stand up against Republicans, Becerra acknowledges he’s not the type of politician who gives stem-winder speeches or creates viral moments on social media.

“I am who I am. I’ve had pretty decent success being authentic. That’s not going to change,” he said.

While not mentioning Robert F. Kennedy Jr. by name, Becerra faulted his successor as HHS secretary for not getting on top of the current measles outbreak, blaming it on a lack of preparation.

“What we can’t afford are man-made disasters where you fire people simply because they’re workers for the federal government, or you stop doing cancer research simply because you don’t like the NIH,” Beccera said, referring to the National Institutes of Health. “The reality is, it’s California’s time to rise.

“We must rise to this challenge.”