Governors’ Fitness Councils Chairman Jake Steinfeld Considering a Run For Governor

Actor and Chairman of the National Foundation for Governors’ Fitness Councils (NFGFC) Jake Steinfeld announced on Friday that he is now considering running for Governor of California in 2026.

During an interview on “The Brian Kilmeade Show” on Fox News, Steinfeld started off by criticizing the slow recovery process in the Palisades following the January fire, from which he lost his house. However, this then led into the surprise revelation that Steinfeld is currently considering a run for Governor next year.

“I came to California from New York at a young age to pursue a dream,” said Steinfeld on Friday. “That dream of California was big then, and what it was isn’t there now. You hear the Mayor and Governor, they’re saying rebuilding is lightning fast. But go out there and you can see it isn’t. It takes you weeks and months sometimes a year to building permits done.”

“You push people far enough, you burn somebody hot enough, change happens. There needs to be change. I know what I can do. I know what I’ve done with my life. Here’s what I’ve learned – You don’t know everything. But if you get the right people around you, like the President has done in his second term, it can bring change. Change is rough. Change breaks things. But change is good. Change can happen.

“If there is a good strong interest, and the interest is right, and we see an opportunity, there’s a good chance that I’ll run for Governor of California.”

When pressed on how close he was on a decision, Steinfeld was vague but explained that he was currently talking with those in the political arena about a run.

“Right now there’s a few meetings I need to take,” added Steinfeld. “There’s a few people I need to meet. I love the fact when people count me out. Walk into a room when the bar is set low, they don’t expect anything from you. So when everyone went left, I went right. But you need to get the right people in the right positions. And if I can do that, because I know how to lead. I know how to talk to people.

“There are conversations right now. We want to run on merit. And there was a dream that was California and I want to bring that back in the right way with the right people. In the middle. I’m not about red and blue, I’m about red, white, and blue.”

Another potential candidate in California

Originally from Brooklyn, New York, Steinfeld moved to California and became an actor. After appearing in multiple movies and TV shows in the 80’s and 90’s, he became a fitness entrepreneur, helping train famous clients including Harrison Ford for the Indiana Jones movies. In addition to opening gyms, he started the cable network FitTV and became a well-known fitness personality.

Steinfeld entered politics for the first time in 2006 when then-California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger named him the chairman of the California Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports. He served under Schwarzenegger and Jerry Brown until 2011. The next year he was named the chairman of the National Foundation for Governors’ Fitness Councils, a position he holds to this day. As he told Kilmeade on Friday, he is one of the few people in the country to have worked with all 50 Governors in the country through that position.

Should Steinfeld enter the race, he would come in only with his appointed Fitness Council chairmanships, as well as a stint as honorary Mayor of the Pacific Palisades from 2013-2016, as his only political positions.

He would also enter one of the most crowded California Governor primary elections in history. The Democrats currently have multiple known candidates with electoral experience in the race, including Lt. Governor Eleni Kounalakis, former Congresswoman Katie Porter,  State Superintendent Tony Thurmond, Senator Toni Atkins (D-San Diego), Former State Controller Betty Yee, and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. Meanwhile, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco is the only major Republican to enter the race, as of Friday.

Steinfeld now joins the list of speculative candidates and candidates who have shown interest in a run. For the Democrats, these include Developer and 2022 Los Angeles Mayoral candidate Rick Caruso, as well as former Vice President Kamala Harris, with the latter expected to make an announcement this summer. The GOP list is a bit more extensive, with former State Senator and 2022 Gubernatorial candidate Brian Dahle, former Olympian and 2021 Gubernatorial candidate Caitlyn Jenner, and Special Presidential Envoy, former Director of National Intelligence and former Ambassador to Germany Ric Grenell, and Fox New Host and former advisor to UK Prime Minister David Cameron Steve Hilton all mulling runs.

Steinfeld isn’t the first actor to get significant attention on a possible run, with Mel Gibson receiving significant attention of a speculative run earlier this month following Gibson giving high profile public criticisms of Governor Newsom. Support was so high for Gibson that at least one poll showed him as the leading GOP candidate. However, Gibson’s publicist Alan Nierob confirmed to the Globe a few weeks ago that Gibson was not interested despite the push for him.

“He’s sticking with his day job for now,” said Nierob to the Globe earlier this month.

Another announcement by Steinfeld is expected in the coming weeks.