Trump backs Hilton ahead of California GOP vote, testing Bianco’s grip on party endorsement
California Republicans this weekend will vote to endorse their pick for California governor in the race to succeed term-limited Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.The vote, this Sunday in San Diego at...
By Fox News · Fox News
California Republicans this weekend will vote to endorse their pick for California governor in the race to succeed term-limited Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom . The vote, this Sunday in San Diego at the California GOP's annual convention, comes a week after President Donald Trump took sides between the two major Republican candidates in the race, backing conservative commentator and former Fox News Channel host Steve Hilton over Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco. Trump, whose endorsements are extremely influential in GOP primaries, argued in his endorsement statement that California had "gone to hell" and that "Steve can turn it around, before it is too late, and, as President, I will help him to do so!" The president's support for Hilton is expected to pay immediate dividends at the state GOP convention. HERE'S WHO TRUMP IS BACKING IN THE GOLDEN STATE GUBERNATORIAL SHOWDOWN "I think it definitely can help rally the base behind a candidate and generate some noise and some enthusiasm," California Republican Party chairwoman Corrin Rankin told Fox News Digital. Bianco is a loyal Trump supporter who has plenty of friends and support among California Republican insiders. But Trump's endorsement of Hilton, a top adviser to then-British Prime Minister David Cameron a decade and a half ago before moving to the U.S. and becoming an American citizen in 2021, may boost him at the GOP convention, where backing from 60% of delegates is needed to land the party's endorsement. But Bianco, the sheriff who recently grabbed plenty of national attention for seizing ballots in Riverside County, appeared defiant. "For too long, politicians and insiders from Sacramento to Washington have tried to pick our leaders for us. That’s not leadership, that’s a coronation, and it’s exactly how we ended up with the failed leadership Californians are living with today," he said in a social media video. "This election belongs to the people, not the political class." TOUGH ON CRIME REPUBLICAN SHER…