Steve Hilton admits Trump unpopularity sank run for California governor, vows to keep fighting

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Steve Hilton said there is “no question” that anger at President Trump helped sink his campaign for California governor along with Republicans across the country — but the former Fox News host isn’t done fighting.

Hilton said he would consider another run for office after losing to Democrat Xavier Becerra, promising to keep pushing for relief from California’s high costs.

Becerra had 5,268,634 votes (64.4%) to Hilton’s 2,917,832 votes (35.6%), according to results reported Thursday morning. Ballots were still being counted following a decisive victory that extended Democrats’ 16-year hold on the governor’s office.

“I’m in this for the long term, whether that is as a candidate, whether that is a leader, a policymaker, maybe all of those things,” Hilton said.

“Nothing is off the table.”

Asked specifically about another gubernatorial campaign, Hilton said: “I certainly wouldn’t rule it out.”

The Republican entrepreneur and former adviser to UK Prime Minister David Cameron described his first campaign as something of a prototype.

Hilton acknowledged the difficulty of breaking through a campaign dominated by national politics, recounting a conversation with a man whose Mexican immigrant family and friends were preoccupied with an ICE Halloween video before the election.

“That ICE Halloween video, I’ve got to tell you, is one of the most disgusting and dehumanizing things I’ve ever seen put out by any government anywhere,” Hilton said.

He nevertheless rejected suggestions that reports of voting problems cast doubt on his defeat.

“I don’t think there’s any reason to question the outcome based on stories like that,” he said.

Hilton described his role as the “loyal opposition,” pressing Becerra to lower gasoline prices, make housing more affordable and improve conditions for small businesses.

If Democrats deliver, Hilton said, he would support them. But he expressed little confidence that they would change course.

“I have very little expectation that they’re going to bring gas prices down, improve the business climate, make housing more affordable,” he said. “Because they’ve had 16 years to do it, and it’s gone in the opposite direction.”

Hilton said he had not spoken with Becerra since the election but would be willing to share ideas.

“I’m not sure he’s the chatty kind,” Hilton said. “I don’t think I’m going to be his first port of call.”

The campaign’s most affecting postelection review, he said, came over beers with teammates when a bartender quietly gave them a free round.

“We really could have used you up there,” he recalled her saying.

Hilton said the encounter captured the desperation he heard from working Californians throughout the campaign.

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“I really hope that our new governor, the new Legislature, understands that,” he said. “That’s the number one thing I’ve learned in the last year and a half, and it breaks my heart to say it: Californians are at breaking point, and we’ve got to do something about that.”

For now, Hilton plans to take a few weeks off, spend time with friends and family and enjoy the holidays before deciding what comes next.

“You can’t give up,” Hilton said. “You can’t give up on the state. You can’t give up on all those people who are desperate for change.”

In closing, Hilton borrowed a line from Arnold Schwarzenegger, California’s last Republican governor.

“In the words of a former Republican governor — I’m not going to try and do the accent — but I definitely will be back,” Hilton said.