San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan has more money in the bank, and his two supporting PACs also have more money on hand than any of the remaining candidates for California governor, with less than six weeks until the June 2 primary.
Documents filed through April 23 by the candidates with the California Secretary of State show Mahan – still polling in single digits – has approximately $8.9 million on hand to spend in the campaign home stretch, more than double any other candidate.
Also, an independent committee supporting Mahan, California Back to Basics, reported more than $6.5 million on hand, while another Mahan-supporting PAC reported more than $49,000 in the bank, according to reports filed with the Secretary of State.
Mahan also has raised more money since the April 18 cutoff for the Secretary of State data – $395,600 – than other candidates, which includes $72,900 the day after the April 22 statewide television and online debate among the four Democrats and two Republicans at the top of the polls.
Mahan's campaign reported a bank balance of $8,525,636 as of April 18, and reported raising $395,600 in the last week.
The candidate leading all Democrats in the most recent polls, Tom Steyer, reported a campaign balance of $4,177,342. Steyer has spent nearly $106 million on his mostly self-funded campaign in 2026 alone. The reports show that 99.9% of the billionaire’s campaign money comes from his personal fortune.
Steyers' self-funded campaign spending is likely to accelerate in the primary campaign's final six weeks.
Support among likely voters for Mahan, who began his campaign less than three months ago, was at 5% in the most recent poll, released April 15, the first independent poll since the departure of Rep. Eric Swalwell amid sexual assault allegations.
The candidate that polls showed initially benefited the most from Swalwell’s decision to leave the campaign, Xavier Becerra, is short on cash. His reports filed April 23 showed he had an April 18 campaign balance of just $507,079, and raised an additional $196,000 in the past week.
An analysis of Becerra’s contributions also shows other potential concerns for his campaign’s fundraising.
In 2025 – Becerra began his campaign last spring – 78 individuals donated $5,000 each, and two supporters donated the maximum $39,200, including $196,000 from the multiple laborers’ union PACs. In 2026, he has yet to receive another boost from union PACs, and reported just three $5,000 donors and five $39,400 donors. Most of the $4.25 million spent by the Becerra campaign in 2026 came from money raised in 2025. This year, his campaign collected a little over $1 million.
Democrat Katie Porter has spent less than the other opponents in 2026, but has saved up a nest egg of nearly $4 million for the campaign’s final weeks, including $169,550 raised since the April 18 cutoff for the Secretary of State report.
Polling frontrunner Steve Hilton showed the Republican with an April 18 bank balance of more than $2 million, plus $234,610 in new contributions in the past week, after raising more than $4 million in 2026.
The other Republican candidate, Chad Bianco, reported a campaign bank balance of nearly $1.4 million, with only $42,709 collected in the past week.
It remains to be seen whether campaign spending will turn the tide, or whether the two remaining statewide television debates will be key to the primary battle.
Steyer’s campaign spending in 2026 has outspent all the other candidates combined by 3-to-1.
Mahan has spent $5.5 million and two PACs have spent more than $19.5 million promoting the San Jose mayor, as he continues seeking to boost his stateside profile.
Time is running out for the candidates, so spending and fundraising by all candidates is likely to increase in the weeks ahead.
Voter information guides were mailed out this week. Ballots will be mailed out in less than two weeks, and early voting sites will open May 4.
The top two finishers in the June 2 primary will face off in November.
