Katie Porter’s two caught-on-tape blunders have damaged her status as a frontrunner in the open governor’s race, according to a new poll obtained by The Sacramento Bee.
The Democratic candidate for governor apologized last month after two videos of her went viral. In one, she threatened to walk out of an interview with a Sacramento CBS reporter. In the second video obtained by Politico, the former congresswoman used expletives to berate a staff member during a pre-taped interview with a Biden administration official.
The new survey was commissioned by Antonio Villaraigosa, another Democrat running for governor, and conducted by Democratic pollster Ben Tulchin. It asked 919 likely 2026 primary voters whether they had heard of Porter’s recent controversies and whether it would affect their vote. The margin of error was +/- 3.2%.
Seventy-two percent of respondents said they had seen, heard or read about Porter’s CBS interview or treatment of her staff. The same number also said the information would make them less likely to vote for her. Thirteen percent said they were more likely to vote for her and 15% were unsure.
The poll also showed Villaraigosa surpassing Porter as the Democratic frontrunner, with 19% of respondents saying they would vote for the former Los Angeles mayor if the primary were today, compared to 15% who said they would support Porter.
Chad Bianco, the Republican sheriff of Riverside County, had the highest level of support with 20% saying they would vote for him. Fellow GOP candidate and former Fox News pundit Steve Hilton had 18%. The polling memo notes that the Republican split indicates “a potential scenario where two Democrats could qualify for the general election.”
All other Democratic candidates received support in the single digits.
In a head-to-head matchup between the top two Democrats, 35% said they would support Villaraigosa and 19% would vote for Porter, with 46% undecided.
“This poll is consistent with recent public polling that shows Antonio Villaraigosa and Katie Porter as the only Democrats with double-digit support in the primary,” Tulchin said, adding that it “finds that Villaraigosa holds a commanding lead over Porter in a head-to-head contest, driven by the negative impact of Porter’s recent controversies.”
The question about individual candidates included Tom Steyer, a philanthropist and 2020 presidential candidate who is exploring a bid for governor. It did not include Sen. Alex Padilla of Los Angeles or businessman Rick Caruso, who are also both considering getting into the race to replace termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Related Stories from Sacramento Bee
Nicole Nixon
The Sacramento Bee
Nicole Nixon covers California politics for The Sacramento Bee’s Capitol Bureau. Previously, she spent nearly a decade reporting for public radio stations in Sacramento and her hometown of Salt Lake City.
