Where Fundraising Stands In A Post-Harris 2026 Gubernatorial Race

With former Vice President Kamala Harris now out of the 2026 Gubernatorial race, she also leaves behind one of the main things that made her competitive: her fundraising machine. For her 2024 presidential run she raised well over a billion dollars through her PAC, and would have entered the Gubernatorial race with not only a fundraising machine in place, but with millions already in the war chest.

But with Kamala out, fundraising is now back to the remaining candidates through big donors, grassroots efforts, and both parties anxiously now awaiting frontrunners to throw money at. So, without Harris, where does everyone currently stand?

Currently, Q2 funding is still being tabulated for many candidates, but we do know where many candidates were earlier this year, as well as who recent big donors were. And, well, fundraising amount reporting has been scattershot, with some candidates updating amounts like clockwork, and others not updating so frequently. As of everyone’s last filings, Lt. Governor Eleni Kounalakis is currently out ahead with $5.7 million in contributions and $4.7 million cash on hand. However, big donors have largely evaded her in 2025, as have many big name Democratic donors as they awaited on word from Harris, with her biggest single donation being $65,000.

Former Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins is up there as well, raising $4.7 million and having $4 million cash on hand, with former Diamond Resorts CEO Stephen Cloobeck clocking in at $3.3 million in contributions and $1.9 million on hand.

The highest Republican is next, with Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco announcing on Thursday that he has raised more than $1.6 million for his first 2025 fundraising period, with $1.1 million on hand. Unlike the more larger donors, Bianco had more of a grassroots effort going as well. Sheriff Bianco raised $1.64 million, with $321k raised from 8,500 donations of $100 or less, although large donations have been constant as well.

“California is broken. With the highest taxes, housing prices and energy rates in the nation – and a broken criminal justice system that puts criminals above victims – it’s clear that we need a major change in Sacramento to lower our cost of living and bring our state back,” said Bianco during his fundraising announcement. “I am proud of the support our campaign has received from individuals across the political spectrum. Voters are looking for something new: a state where the middle class can thrive rather than be squeezed; a state where young men and women can afford to buy a home; a state where families can turn on their air conditioning without fear of the cost; and a state where criminals are held accountable for their criminal action.”

Fundraising in 2025

Former State Controller Betty Yee and State Superintendent Tony Thurmond also placed high, each garnering over $1 million in contributions, and having around $600,000 cash in hand.

However, the missing candidates, former Congresswoman Katie Porter, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, and former advisor to British Prime Minister David Cameron and political commentator Steve Hilton, are all fundraising juggernauts. Indeed, both Porter and Hilton have both reported large incoming contributions. Villaraigosa managed to pull in $1.5 million in donations in his first week after announcing.

Right now, fundraising numbers are all over the map. Many candidates only recently got in, some are juggling multiple PACs, and others are still trying to shift into campaign mode. And we may not even have all the final candidates. Some, like Pastor Che Ahn, only entered the race less than a month ago. But from the numbers we have so far, and with Harris out of the race, it is going to be a major scramble going into the primary.

8 Democratic candidates have or are projected to have more than $1 million in donations coming in during the first fundraising period. That means substantial campaign sizes, and even more in ads. On the GOP, only Bianco and Hilton can really claim those types of numbers right now, but then again the party will likely want to save money this early while the Democrats spend a lot and cannibalize themselves in a race that is now wide open. And if the Dems continue to fracture the vote and spend like crazy with no clear front runner, who knows what can happen