By The Epoch Times | Created at 2025-03-12 02:46:08 | Updated at 2025-03-12 11:22:16
8 hours ago
In a video posted on social media, Porter said she wanted to stop Trump ‘from hurting Californians.’
Former U.S. Rep. Katie Porter announced on March 11 her bid to become California’s next governor in a tough-talking video criticizing President Donald Trump.
“What California needs now is a little bit of hope and a whole lot of grit,” Porter wrote with the video in the post on X announcing her candidacy for the 2026 gubernatorial election.
Porter, 51, said she first ran for a seat in the House of Representatives in 2017 to “hold Trump accountable.”
She served two terms before giving up her seat to run for the U.S. Senate seat previously held by the late Dianne Feinstein. The outspoken progressive politician from Irvine, Calif., lost in the 2024 primary to fellow Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff, calling the election “rigged by billionaires.” Schiff defeated Republican Steve Garvey to win the seat and was sworn in on Dec. 9.
Porter is a consumer protection attorney and has three children.
In the video released Tuesday, Porter said she wanted to stop Trump “from hurting Californians.”
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“In Congress, I held the Trump administration’s feet to the fire when they hurt Americans,” she said. “As governor, I won’t ever back down when Trump hurts Californians. Whether it’s holding up disaster relief, attacking our rights and communities, or screwing over working families to benefit himself and his cronies.”
The candidate said she would make sure that California protects LGBT communities, immigrants, and access to abortion, while also ensuring big oil, big banks, and big pharma don’t undermine Californians.
“I’ve only ever been motivated by one thing, making Californians’ lives better,” Porter said. “And I’ll go toe to toe with anyone who tries to hurt Californians, because that’s what it means to have the courage to solve our toughest problems, to build on our progress, to fight for you. That’s the leadership California deserves.”
Rep. Katie Porter (D-Irvine) looks over construction on a State Route 73 interchange from the 405 Freeway in Costa Mesa, Calif., on April 21, 2022. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times
Porter will face several big-name Democrats who have already declared their candidacies. Former State Sen. Toni Atkins, Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, state public schools Superintendent Tony Thurmond, former L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, former State Controller Betty Yee, and former deputy secretary of the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency Michael Younger have already entered the race.
Rick Caruso, CEO of the Caruso real estate company and runner-up for mayor of Los Angeles in 2022, has also publicly expressed interest in running.
Republicans are also lining up for the governor’s seat. Those who have declared their candidacies include Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, business consultant Sharifah Hardie, entrepreneur Brandon Jones and Zacky Farms Vice President Leo Zacky.
In a statement on March 11 in response to Porter entering the race for governor, Bianco said Porter has “a history of supporting policies that increased inflation, grocery, gas and energy prices. She is cut from the same cloth of the failed career politicians who created California’s cost-of-living crisis.
“We cannot expect the same people who created this mess to get us out of it. Californians deserve so much better,” he said.
Republicans who have expressed interest include former state Sen. Brian Dahle, former U.S. Ambassador Richard Grenell, political adviser Steve Hilton, and media personality Caitlyn Jenner.
