Exclusive: Mel Gibson Confirms to Globe He Isn’t Running For Governor

In an exclusive to the California Globe, Mel Gibson’s publicist, Alan Nierob, confirmed to the Globe that actor and Special Ambassador to Hollywood Mel Gibson will not be running for Governor of California in 2026 following several weeks of speculation.

“He’s sticking with his day job for now,” said Nierob to the Globe on Thursday.

Since the Palisades Fire in early January where his house was destroyed, Gibson has become one of the leading figures in speaking out against Governor Gavin Newsom and Mayor Karen Bass for their mismanagement of the January wildfires. Following being named a Special Ambassador to Hollywood by President Donald Trump in January, Gibson followed up by being one of the first people to sign the recall petition against Newsom.

His growing clout and new position began to win over some Republicans. By late February, crowds at recall rallies began to shout “Gibson for Governor.” However, his most impressive stride was earlier this week when a new Gubernatorial poll found that he ranked third amongst confirmed and speculatory candidates, only behind former Congresswoman Katie Porter and Vice President Kamala Harris. While they got 25% and 20% of the poll respectively, Gibson received 12%, coming down as the most popular Republican in the poll and finishing one point ahead of Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco (R), a confirmed candidate.

While his popularity grew, Gibson was not even so much as mentioned a possible run for Governor, nor any interest in elected office. This led the Globe to reach out to Gibson’s publicist on Thursday and confirm that he isn’t running.

Had Gibson run, he would have been the latest acclaimed actor to have run for the office, following Ronald Reagan, who won in 1966 and 1970, and Arnold Schwarzenegger, who won in 2003 and 2006.

“It would have been really something for him to run, especially in this race,” explained gubernatorial pollster Guillermo Williams to the Globe on Thursday. “But a lot of Californians have tired of celebrities running for office in recent years. Reagan was a union head, Schwarzenegger had a few Presidential appointments, and Gibson was named a special ambassador. So it’s not like they don’t have anything. But a lot of Californians also want anyone besides Porter or Harris.

“Republicans are in the best spot they have been in for years at gaining back ground. The GOP did very well in California in the 2024 elections, and they want to build further next year. At the very least, they want to the race to have the best showing for the party since 2006. Gibson could have gotten there, but he also does have significant baggage with him. We’ll see who else runs.

“For Gibson right now, he seems to be in a good spot. He has the special ambassador title right now, and he is very much a leading voice on the Newsom recall. That is getting him a lot of goodwill. He’s also speaking up for victims of the wildfires that way too. So not running for Governor makes sense since this is working for him right now. He’s winning a lot of people back by doing this too.”