Tom Steyer

Investor · Philanthropist · Activist

Katie Porter

Law Professor · Former U.S. Rep.

Xavier Becerra

Former HHS Secretary · Atty. General

Background

Yale B.A. summa laude (1979); Stanford MBA (1983)
Founded Farallon Capital ($8M→$20B); left finance 2012
Founded NextGen America; Galvanize Climate Solutions
2020 Democratic presidential candidate
No elected office held

Yale B.A. cum laude (1996); Harvard Law J.D. magna cum laude (2001) — student of Sen. Elizabeth Warren
Tenured Professor, UC Irvine School of Law
CA Monitor, National Mortgage Settlement (appt. by A.G. Kamala Harris, 2012–14)
U.S. Rep. CA-45/47 (2019–2025); flipped historically Republican Orange County seat

Stanford B.A. (1980, first in family to graduate); Stanford Law J.D. (1984)
CA Assembly (1990–92); U.S. House, 12 terms (1993–2017); Chair, House Democratic Caucus
CA Attorney General (2017–21): filed 122 lawsuits vs. Trump administration
U.S. HHS Secretary (2021–25): oversaw COVID-19 response; implemented ACA

Key Priorities

Climate: 100% clean energy; break PG&E monopoly; windfall profits tax on oil producers; green jobs
Housing: Build 1 million affordable homes; close corporate property tax loopholes
Healthcare: Single-payer transition
Economy: Reform corporate taxes; make wealthy pay fair share
Education: Free preschool and community college; subsidized childcare

Climate: Expand renewables; defend clean air laws; protect public lands
Housing: Cut red tape; legalize multi-family near transit (SB 79); crack down on Wall Street investors; expand Section 8
Healthcare: Medicare for All; lower Rx costs; ban wrongful claim denials
Economy: Eliminate state income tax for households <$100K; wealth tax on top earners
Education: Free years 3–4 at UC; universal childcare; paid family leave

Climate: Bureau of Environmental Justice (created as A.G.); defended CA clean car standards; less central to 2026 platform
Housing: State power where market has failed; crack down on price gouging; expand rent protections
Healthcare: "Health Care Governor"; strengthen Medi-Cal; lower Rx costs; long-term Medicare for All
Economy: Take on corporations; protect workers; preserve California Dream
Rights: Reproductive rights, immigrant communities, civil liberties

Foreign Policy

U.S. aid to Israel conditional on halting settlements; called Iran escalation "unnecessary war"; favors multilateral diplomacy over military action.

Supports bilateral ceasefire contingent on hostage release and two-state solution; hawkish on Iran accountability; insists on Leahy Law human rights vetting of military aid.

Supports two-state solution; called for immediate ceasefire and humanitarian surge to Gaza; referred to "Israel and Palestine" at WHO Assembly (later clarified as misstatement).

Campaign Finance & Major Donors

Total raised: $122.7M — $122.5M his own money; ~$161K from outside donors
Outspending entire field combined in advertising
Outside donors: Nat Simons; Alfred Clark; Richard & Dee Lawrence (Cool Effect clean energy)
Farallon's past investments in private prisons (CoreCivic) and fossil fuels draw criticism
Advocates banning corporate PAC money in state elections

Total raised: $6.24M from 48,000+ donors; avg. contribution ~$68; $3.2M cash on hand
Claims no federal corporate PAC money; 100,000+ individual donors as of April 2026
Notable donors: NUHW PAC; CA Teamsters PACs; SMART union PACs; actor Edward Norton

Total raised: $2.89M — smallest war chest among top Democratic contenders
Seeded with $2.6M+ transferred from prior campaign accounts
Notable donors: Chevron (per state filings); labor and healthcare PACs
Chevron donation has drawn scrutiny given his A.G. environmental record

Key Endorsements

Labor: CA Teachers Association (Apr. 15); CA Nurses Assoc.; CFT; United Domestic Workers (250K); CA School Employees Assoc.; CA Federation of Labor (co-endorsement w/ Porter)
Progressive: Our Revolution (Bernie Sanders org, Apr. 20); Courage California
Environment: California Environmental Voters; Center for Biological Diversity Action Fund
Elected officials: Toni Atkins (former CA Senate President pro tempore); John Podesta; Ali Zaidi (former White House climate advisor); Bill McKibben; Jane Fonda

Labor: CA Federation of Labor (co-endorsement w/ Steyer); NUHW; UAW Region 6; Teamsters CA; UNAC/UHCP; ATU; IBEW Local 441
Women's/reform: EMILY's List; Fund Her; End Citizens United
Elected officials: Sen. Elizabeth Warren; Rep. Robert Garcia; Rep. Mondaire Jones
Environment: California Environmental Voters

Labor: LIUNA
Healthcare: CPCA Advocates; CA Primary Care Assoc.; CA Partnership for Health
Education: CA Faculty Assoc.
Party/youth: CA College Democrats; Fresno & San Diego Young Democrats
Note: former endorser Sharon Quirk-Silva (AD-67) shifted to Steyer; former chief of staff indicted on federal corruption charges (Becerra not implicated)

Strengths

Virtually unlimited self-funding; no donor entanglements
Decades of climate credibility; proven youth voter mobilization (NextGen)
Outsider appeal; national Democratic network

National name recognition as consumer watchdog
Exceptional communication skills; large grassroots base
Flipped CA-45 (Republican Orange County) in 2018

Deepest résumé: legislative + state exec + federal exec
122 lawsuits vs. Trump administration — proven legal fighter
Strong appeal to Latino voters, labor, institutional Democrats

Weaknesses

"Buying the race" — self-funding dwarfs rivals
No elected office experience
Farallon history: private prisons, fossil fuels, predatory lending

Temperament/leadership style questions raised across party lines
Missed 5.5% of House votes overall; ~65% in final months of term
Lost 2024 Senate primary to Adam Schiff

Low statewide name recognition
Seen as establishment figure; tied to low-approval Democratic brand
Did not pursue ExxonMobil climate case (later revived by A.G. Bonta)
Declined charges in 2018 Stephon Clark shooting — sparked widespread protests

California Governor — Candidate Comparison