Steve Hilton is the Republican nominee for governor of California.
Posted by Real Time with Bill Maher, Checked
- Sources
- 4 support
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 85%
Real Time with Bill MaherOct 24, 2026
Multiple sources describe Steve Hilton as the Republican nominee for California governor as of October 2026, including a Newsweek piece from October 12 and a Fox News radio interview from September 16, and CalMatters reports he finished in the top two in the June primary against Democrat Xavier Becerra.
This claim is about the present, so it is judged as of the day it was checked.
What was said
… I know. I appreciate you coming on here. Thank you so much. It's an honor. Alright, thank you. Nice to meet you. Appreciate it. Alright, what do you think about that? All right, Caroline, let's read our panel. Alright, here's the Republican nominee for governor of California, Steve Hilton. The audience, he is the Democratic governor of Kentucky and author of Go and Do Likewise: How We All How We Heal a Broken Country, Governor Andy Beshear is back with us. Thank you, gentlemen, for being here. …
Real Time with Bill Maher · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. Newsweek (Oct 12, 2026) describes Hilton as 'the Republican nominee for governor of California.'[2]
Supports. Fox News radio (Sep 16, 2026) introduces Hilton as 'now the Republican nominee for governor of California.'[4]
Supports. CalMatters (Oct 27, 2026) reports that Hilton and Becerra finished in the top two spots in the June primary, and that Hilton is the Republican candidate in the general election.[3]
Supports. AP (Oct 2, 2026) identifies Republican Steve Hilton as the GOP candidate in the California governor's race.[1]
Context. The extracted claim matches the passage's wording, so there is no extraction departure. Under California's top-two system the nominee label is used by sources for the general-election candidate, and no source disputes it.
Sources
4 sources: 1 fact-checker, 2 not rated, 1 rated low
- 1Steve Hilton faces steep odds in bid for California governor after 20-year GOP droughtapnews.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 2Can this Brit turn California Red? Steve Hilton isn't holding backnewsweek.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 3The final stretch: Catch up on what’s happened in the ...kpbs.org · not rated · cited for: supports
- 4Steve Hilton on Newsom: 'He Wants to Run, But He Doesn't Want to Be Humiliated'radio.foxnews.com · rated low for factual reporting by Iffy.news · cited for: supports
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
- Steve Hilton is a candidate running a statewide campaign in California.True
- Steve Hilton received Donald Trump's endorsement for the primary election.True
- 2.3 million people voted for Steve Hilton in the primary election.True
- Steve Hilton lost his congressional race in Maryland by one point.Can’t tell
- Steve Hilton has visited all 58 counties in California.True