For Steve Hilton, two just isn’t firm however moderately a crowd.
So the previous Fox Information host is deploying a brand new marketing campaign technique within the race for California governor: assault fellow Republican candidate Chad Bianco.
Throughout the current televised debate that featured a few of the main candidates within the gubernatorial contest, Hilton referred to Bianco as a “RINO,” a time period that stands for “Republican in title solely” and is used to insinuate somebody just isn’t a loyal or true Republican.
Hilton additionally criticized Bianco for kneeling with protesters throughout tense demonstrations in 2020 within the wake of George Floyd‘s homicide. Bianco, in a information interview on the time, mentioned he wished to get previous “this massive large divide, the place it’s us vs. them” and agreed with “the idea of this protest” till it was not peaceable.
Associated: GOP frontrunners in California’s gubernatorial race hail from completely different worlds
“Chad Bianco has extra baggage than LAX,” Hilton mentioned through the debate, referring to his fellow GOP contender as “shifty sheriff.”
This pivot in technique, Hilton mentioned in an interview after the talk, is all about making it by means of the first.
Each Bianco and Hilton have constantly topped polls within the race for governor, whereas Democrats battle to interrupt by means of with a transparent frontrunner within the deep blue state. Bianco is 2 proportion factors forward of Hilton in Actual Clear Politics’ mixture of polls, adopted by Rep. Eric Swalwell and former Rep. Katie Porter, who path Hilton by 1.5 and a pair of proportion factors, respectively.
“The Republican vote is being break up between me and Chad Bianco,” Hilton mentioned. Meaning, he mentioned, there’s an excellent likelihood two Democrats will make it by means of the June election to vie for the governor’s seat within the normal election.
“I feel our accountability is that we be sure that we don’t have a break up vote and have two Democrats within the high two,” Hilton mentioned. “My job is to do all the things I feel we will do to keep away from that disastrous final result and get behind one Republican candidate, the strongest one. I feel that’s me.”
Election observers say Hilton’s level about splitting the vote isn’t unsuitable.
“It’s basic math. You possibly can’t get to a plurality and even second most by splitting the Republican vote,” mentioned Matt Lesenyie, an professional in political psychology who teaches at Cal State Lengthy Seaside.
“There simply aren’t sufficient Republicans within the state to spare on a candidate with no probabilities (the Republican working second) because the high two vote-getters won’t be Republicans,” Lesenyie added. “It’s intestine test time, time to ask: Is their candidacy an arrogance venture or a dedicated and strategic run for governor?”
Hilton, after all, mentioned he believes he’s the dedicated candidate.
Bianco — who didn’t attend the talk, reportedly due to a scheduling battle — didn’t reply to a number of requests for remark for this story.
However in a social media submit the day after the talk, Bianco mentioned he’s a “doer.”
“If you wish to elect a talker, there are many choices,” the submit mentioned. “If you would like a doer, that’s me. Ask the officers underneath my command who they belief. Ask the enterprise house owners who stayed open throughout COVID. Ask the individuals who have been right here preventing the battle with me for many years.”
If you wish to elect a talker, there are many choices.
If you would like a doer, that is me.
Ask the officers underneath my command who they belief.
Ask the enterprise house owners who stayed open throughout covid.
Ask the individuals who have been right here preventing the battle with me for many years.
— Sheriff Chad Bianco (@ChadBianco) February 5, 2026
Though they’re each Republicans and each gubernatorial contenders, Bianco and Hilton hail from vastly completely different worlds.
Hilton, 56, is a British-born international businessman who helped get David Cameron elected as the UK’s prime minister earlier than turning into a Fox Information host. He moved to the Bay Space in 2012 and, in 2023, based Golden Collectively, a coverage group.
Bianco, who is commonly seen sporting a cowboy hat, grew up in a small mining city in Utah, shifting to Southern California in 1989. 4 years later, he graduated from the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Academy at, based on his marketing campaign bio, the highest of his class.
To many, the 58-year-old is the no-nonsense, law-and-order candidate who championed Proposition 36, the 2024 voter-approved poll measure that elevated penalties for sure drug and retail theft crimes, and has made public security a pillar of his marketing campaign.
Hilton’s current assaults on Bianco — giving him nicknames à la President Donald Trump’s personal infamous manner for going after political opponents and launching an internet site that makes an attempt to tie the sheriff to the Black Lives Matter motion in a demeaning manner — is holding in step with his persona, mentioned Dan Schnur, who teaches political messaging at USC and UC Berkeley.
“He’s a way more aggressive presence on the marketing campaign path. This technique reinforces the best way he (Hilton) needs voters to consider him,” Schnur mentioned.
Hilton, in the meantime, insisted he’s open to working with Bianco.
And he isn’t asking the opposite Republican contenders for statewide workplace he’s working alongside — lieutenant governor candidate Gloria Romero, legal professional normal contender Michael Gates and controller contestant Herb Morgan are campaigning as what they’re calling “California’s Golden Ticket” — to keep away from showing with Bianco at different occasions. (Gates, for instance, is scheduled to seem at a Conservative Patriots of Orange County gathering in Santa Ana with Bianco later this month, based on an invite for the occasion.)
Ought to Hilton show to achieve success and make it by means of the first, Schnur doesn’t consider his attacking Bianco will flip away any of the Riverside County sheriff’s Republican supporters within the fall.
“The playbook is far completely different at this time than it may need been 10 years in the past. Voters are far more tolerant of 1 member attacking one other member of their social gathering than they may have been previously,” mentioned Schnur.
And whether or not Bianco really heeds Hilton’s name to drop out of the race, nicely, that’s a little bit of a protracted shot, election observers mentioned.
“The purpose of Hilton’s message might be much less to persuade Bianco to step apart however to persuade his voters to change their allegiance,” Schnur mentioned.
“Assuming that one or the opposite does end within the high two in June, they’ve an uphill battle to November,” he added.
“However you’ll be able to’t battle that battle except you get there.”
Employees author Linh Tat contributed to this report.
