Make California Post a Preferred Source This may seem like a strange time for a candidate who lost in the biggest Republican wipeout for half a century to be optimistic — but I am.
That’s because here in California we laid the foundations of an ideas-led revival that has the potential to sweep the nation as powerfully as the “Bluenami” crashed across America last week.
My campaign for governor was based on an idea that has been my focus for the past decade: “Positive Populism.”
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It began with a chart I came across when writing my 2015 book, “More Human.”
It showed that since the mid 1970s, the earnings of the majority of American workers, after inflation, had barely risen at all.
Over the same period, the incomes of the top 20%, and of US corporations, went up like a hockey stick.
We had decades of economic growth and wealth creation — but regardless of who was in power or which policies were pursued, the typical working family in America was no better off.
This is why in 2016 we saw the rise of the modern populist movement, in various forms: Brexit, Donald Trump, Bernie Sanders.
Fast forward to the 2026 midterms and we can see that once again, regular working people are crying out for change, frustrated with the status quo. And they sure voted accordingly.
Of course everyone has a theory about what happened and why. But we have some facts, too.
Our campaign for governor delivered the best performance (OK, least bad!) of pretty much any Republican in the country, in terms of the fall in GOP support since 2024.
That’s despite being massively outspent, unlike Republicans in states like Texas and Florida who had way more money than their Democratic opponents.
Among non-DSA voters, we cut in half the 20-point lead that Democrats have held in California for the last 20 years.
We won support among Democrats and independents as well as Republicans, thanks to a brilliant team and a fresh, creative, energetic campaign.
I believe it’s a model for the future because it speaks so clearly to the moment we’re in.
I ran as an outsider, to shake up a system that obviously isn’t working. I described my campaign as nonpartisan.
Of course I was the Republican candidate. California’s “top two” election system punishes those who step outside the two-party paradigm.
But our central policy pledges: no state income tax on your first $150,000, capping car and truck registration at $73, bringing gas prices down to $3, ending mass homelessness and helping small business — these were not divisive, ideologically-driven arguments.
They were practical reforms designed to lift up people who have been left behind. That’s what made our campaign populist.
Too often, populism — whether from the right or the left — ends up raging at perceived enemies.
Instead we put forward actual solutions. That’s what made it positive populism.
It wasn’t enough to overcome the massive swing in voter sentiment, especially as our elections are increasingly nationalized (a shame, since most things that affect your daily life are controlled at the state and local level).
Over and over in this campaign, and in the days since, I’ve been struck by how most of the people who come up to me and express their support are regular, working Californians.
The most vivid example was at the Rams-Chargers tailgate on the Sunday before Election Day, an unforgettable outpouring of energy and affection from a crowd of football fans, most of them Latino.
For 16 years, the people in charge of California have talked about delivering for working people. But it never happened.
Of course I wish Xavier Becerra well and hope he can succeed where his predecessors have failed. But I’m not holding my breath.
Because it’s the system that needs to change, not just the person at the top.
That’s why I’ll keep fighting for this state, especially for the working people and small businesses whose desperate cries for help will be the most powerful thing I carry with me from this campaign.
I love California, and one way or another, I’ll be back to help make life better here, in the most incredible place on earth.
Steve Hilton is a former candidate for governor of California.
