Xavier Becerra, a former Biden cabinet secretary who led California’s legal battles against President Trump’s first-term agenda, announced a run for California governor on Wednesday, setting up a potential clash with former Vice President Kamala Harris.
She is considering running for governor, scrambling the 2026 contest to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom, who cannot run again because of term limits. Mr. Becerra’s announcement creates a potential scenario in which two Democrats, both of whom were in the same presidential cabinet and both of whom served as California attorney general, battle for the state’s top job.
Mr. Becerra said he decided to run even if Ms. Harris does too.
“What I can tell you with full confidence is, it doesn’t matter who gets in — I’m in,” he said in an interview.
The ties between Mr. Becerra and Ms. Harris date back to the aftermath of the 2016 election, when they effectively traded jobs. She had been California’s attorney general and was elected to the U.S. Senate that year. He had been a congressman and was appointed attorney general after Ms. Harris resigned to join the Senate. They amicably helped each other transition into those jobs, Mr. Becerra said.
By the time Mr. Becerra was confirmed for his cabinet position in 2021, Ms. Harris was vice president. She administered his oath of office.
“My wife held the Bible, and she swore me in,” Mr. Becerra recalled of Ms. Harris.
As members of the Biden cabinet, they worked together frequently on issues related to women’s health care and reproductive rights, and during the 2024 presidential election Mr. Becerra campaigned for Ms. Harris.
“I was there giving more than 100 percent for our ticket, so I’ve for several years had an opportunity to work closely with her,” he said.
Mr. Becerra’s decision to enter the race regardless of whether Ms. Harris runs is the latest turn in what’s already shaping up to be an unusually unpredictable contest. Some Democratic candidates are likely to back down in deference to Ms. Harris. But Mr. Becerra is among a handful who say they’re determined to stay in the race, whether she gets in or not, in contrast to the kind of uncontested ascent Ms. Harris enjoyed when she won the Democratic presidential nomination last year after Mr. Biden withdrew.
Mr. Becerra, a son of Mexican immigrants, served in the Biden administration as the first Latino secretary of Health and Human Services. When he represented Los Angeles in the House, he played a key role writing the Affordable Care Act. Mr. Becerra believes his experience leading the health agency can help California navigate the cuts the federal government has been making to health care programs.
As the state attorney general, Mr. Becerra filed more than 120 lawsuits against the first Trump administration over environmental policy, health care, immigration and other issues. He said he planned to draw on that experience as attorney general as he launches his new campaign. The Democratic-led state has already sued the Trump administration several times since Mr. Trump returned to the White House in January.
Mr. Becerra said he intended to focus on the public’s dissatisfaction with the cost of living, describing an “affordability crisis” for California families faced with the high costs of housing, health care, child care and college.
“The California dream is getting tougher and tougher for a construction worker and a clerical worker,” Mr. Becerra said, referring to the jobs his parents had when he was growing up in Sacramento. “We’ve got to fight for that.”
During his time as health secretary, Mr. Becerra faced some criticism for his handling of the government’s pandemic response, and for stark conditions in shelters for migrant children that were overseen by his agency.
Mr. Becerra enters a crowded field in the governor’s race, which already includes several Democrats with years of government experience and a Republican sheriff who’s a Trump ally. Polls show that the candidate most familiar to voters so far is Katie Porter, a Democrat and former congresswoman who represented Orange County in the House for six years.
Other Democrats who are running include Antonio Villaraigosa, a former mayor of Los Angeles; Eleni Kounalakis, the lieutenant governor and a longtime friend of Ms. Harris; Betty Yee, a former state controller; Toni Atkins, a former state legislative leader; and Tony Thurmond, the state schools superintendent. The most prominent Republican so far is Chad Bianco, the sheriff of Riverside County.
Contenders in both parties are awaiting Ms. Harris’s decision, which she’s expected to make later this summer. She is weighing whether to run for governor next year, run for president in 2028 or pursue a role outside of elected office, according to a person with knowledge of her deliberations.
Some Democrats in California have started pressuring Ms. Harris to make her intentions clear so the race can begin to take shape.
“The governor’s race is not going to be a coronation,” Mr. Villaraigosa said last month at an event in Sacramento, adding that he intended to run no matter who else gets in. “The governor’s race is not a steppingstone to another job. If you want to be governor — any of the candidates — then get in the race. The time is now.”
