LOS ANGELES — President Donald Trump endorsed conservative commentator Steve Hilton for California governor late Sunday night.

The endorsement could have a major impact on a race that remains up for grabs, with recent opinion polls showing Hilton and his top Republican rival, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, as top contenders in the 2026 contest.

"He is a truly fine man, one who has watched as this once great State has gone to Hell," Trump posted on Truth Social, adding that he has known Hilton for many years.

Trump in his endorsement praised Hilton while attacking the record of California Gov. Gavin Newsom, using a derogatory name for the governor. Newsom is serving the last year of his final term as governor as he weighs running for president in 2028.

"Gavin Newscum and the Democrats have done an absolutely horrendous job. People are fleeing, crime is increasing, and Taxes are the highest of any State in the Country, maybe the World. Steve can turn it around, before it is too late, and, as President, I will help him to do so! With Federal help," Trump said.

Hilton's campaign called the president's endorsement "powerful."

"Thank you, Mr. President!" his campaign posted on the social media platform X. "This is the moment California has been waiting for!"

Despite California's solidly Democratic electorate, a recent poll by UC Berkeley's Institute of Governmental Studies and co-sponsored by the Times found Hilton and Bianco leading the crowded field of candidates just months before the June 2 primary — leading to the possibility of Democrats being shut out of a November election that will determine California's next governor. The crowded field of Democrats in the race has splintered their party's voters, providing an opening for the Republicans, the poll showed.

Under the state's top-two primary system, the top two candidates advance to the general election, regardless of their party affiliation.

If Trump's endorsement leads to California Republican voters coalescing behind Hilton, severely damaging Bianco's campaign, that likely would reduce the odds of two GOP candidates finishing in first and second place in the primary.

In California's 2018 governor's race, Trump's endorsement of Republican businessman John Cox helped cement him as the GOP frontrunner and led to his second place finish in the primary election. That propelled Cox to the general election, where he was trounced by Newsom.

Trump's endorsement came the day after Hilton and Bianco squared off in a testy debate in Rancho Mirage that was moderated by Richard Grenell, Trump's former ambassador to Germany, and days before the state GOP meets in San Diego to consider an endorsement in the race.

On Saturday, Bianco said he suspected that Trump would weigh in on the race and that his team had been in talks with the president's advisors.

"Of course, I would want him to support me. He's the president of the United States," Bianco said in an interview.

Hilton on Saturday questioned whether the president would weigh in on the race.

"I've said that I'd be honored to have the President's endorsement. I think that the California Governor's race is pretty low on his [agenda] right now," he said in an interview. "I haven't asked for that, and I'm not expecting him to weigh in."

Jon Fleischman, the former executive director of the California Republican Party, wrote on Substack late Sunday that he believes that Trump's endorsement will significantly boost Hilton's support among GOP voters.

"This Timing Is Not Accidental," he wrote, noting that it was previously unclear whether either candidate could receive the 60% of delegate votes to secure the party nod at its upcoming convention. "Well, obviously this endorsement from the President for Hilton will supercharge his momentum going into the weekend convention"

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