Former Rep. Katie Porter announces run for California governor. ‘Fresh blood and new ideas’
Fresh out of Congress, Katie Porter announced a campaign for governor Tuesday, joining a litany of candidates to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom in an election that’s still 20 months away.
The Democrat, who served three terms in the House before launching a failed Senate bid, had previously teased a potential run for governor. She announced her campaign in a video posted to social media Tuesday morning.
“What California needs now is a little bit of hope and a whole lot of grit,” she said in the video. “Fresh blood and new ideas. Leaders with the backbone to fight for what’s right. That’s why I am running for governor.”
Porter was first elected to the U.S. House in 2018, flipping her Orange County district as part of the “blue wave” of Democrats who went to Washington to push back against the first Trump administration.
She became the first single mom of young children elected to Congress and quickly earned a reputation as one of the sharpest questioners in Washington, grilling Trump cabinet members and Wall Street CEOs with a whiteboard in hand.
While questioning Postmaster General Louis DeJoy in 2020, Porter got the head of the U.S. Postal Service to admit he knew “very little about a postage stamp,” including how much it cost to mail a postcard.
Porter played up her record of standing up to Trump and his appointees in her announcement.
“I first ran for office to hold Trump accountable. I feel that same call to serve now to stop him from hurting Californians,” she said. “As governor, I won’t ever back down when Trump hurts Californians – whether he’s holding up disaster relief, attacking our rights or our communities, or screwing over working families to benefit himself and his cronies.”
How would Porter fare in a crowded race?
Internal polling shared by her campaign showed Porter with a commanding lead among current candidates for governor. The survey of Democratic and No Party Preference voters gave her the highest name ID and favorability ratings among herself, Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, former Controller Betty Yee and billionaire ex-CEO Stephen Cloobeck.
But the poll had a glaring omission: former Vice President Kamala Harris, who is reportedly considering running for governor.
If she does decide to run, Harris’ entrance could scramble the race and nudge candidates to seek other positions or drop out. The Democratic field has already cooled as she mulls her options: Attorney General Rob Bonta opted to seek re-election to his current seat while the other candidates’ fundraising has slowed.
Former Senate leader Toni Atkins, Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, a Republican, have also announced bids for the seat.
Newsom is term-limited and unable to seek a third term in the governor’s mansion.
Last year, Porter opted to run for California’s open Senate seat but finished third in the primary, behind Adam Schiff – who would go on to win the seat – and Republican Steve Garvey.
She faced backlash for saying the primary election was “rigged” by billionaires and PAC spending and later said she regretted using the word.
After leaving Congress earlier this year, Porter returned as a professor to UC Irvine Law School, where she taught courses on business law, consumer law, bankruptcy and secured transactions.
This story was originally published March 11, 2025 at 6:00 AM.
