Steve Hilton received Donald Trump's endorsement for the primary election.
Posted by On with Kara Swisher, Checked
- Sources
- 6 support1 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 95%
On with Kara SwisherAug 10, 2026
… He’s banking on voters’ disaffection with the state’s notoriously high cost of living to beat Democrat Xavier Becerra in November. While Hilton scored President Trump’s endorsement ahead of the primary, he’ll need to win over a lot of Democrats and Independents who loathe Trump to have any shot at winning. Is that even possible for a Republican in 2026? Questions? Comments? …
Multiple tier1 sources (AP, BBC, Reuters) and tier2 NBC report that President Trump endorsed Steve Hilton for California governor, and the Reuters and ABC10 pieces describe the endorsement as covering the primary, with Hilton receiving it for both primary and general elections.
What we found
Supports. AP reports on April 6, 2026 that Trump posted on Truth Social endorsing Republican Steve Hilton for California governor ahead of the June 2 primary.[1]
Supports. BBC and NBC both report the April 2026 Trump endorsement of Hilton in the gubernatorial race before the primary.[3][4]
Supports. Reuters reports Hilton received backing from President Trump in the primary, and later coverage describes Hilton as endorsed by Trump in the primary.[2][5][6]
Context. Trump's endorsement is described as helping Hilton advance through the June primary, and Trump also endorsed him for the general election.[7]
Sources
7 sources: 2 fact-checkers, 1 tier 1, 2 tier 2, 2 not rated
- 1Trump endorses Republican Steven Hilton for California ...apnews.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 2Hilton, Becerra maintain leads in primary race for California governorreuters.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 3Trump endorses ex-UK political aide Steve Hilton for ...bbc.com · tier 1 · cited for: supports
- 4Trump endorses Steve Hilton in California governor's racenbcnews.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 5Steve Hilton Tries Anything as a GOP Long Shot in Californianytimes.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 6Election 2026: Who are the candidates running for California ...mercurynews.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 7Can anti-Trump Californians vote Republican? Hilton campaign makes its caseabc10.com · not rated · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
- Steve Hilton is the Republican nominee for governor of California.True
- 2.3 million people voted for Steve Hilton in the primary election.True
- Steve Hilton is a candidate running a statewide campaign in California.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