California governor candidates lob debate jabs. The claims, explained

California's crowded and closely watched primary for the governor's seat is heating up with candidates using the debate stage to lob accusations and claims.

With one more debate remaining, the rhetoric shows no signs of cooling.

Democrat Xavier Becerra’s record as former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services was called into question.

“The experience we hear from Secretary Becerra didn’t lead to better outcomes,” San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, a Democrat, said during a CNN debate on May 5. “That led to 85,000 migrant children who were lost.”

Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, a Republican, was slammed for once being affiliated with an anti-government organization.

“You know you’re an oath keeper,” former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said during the same debate. “We all know that.”

Here’s some additional context to just some of the remarks heard at recent debates.

Xavier Becerra and unaccompanied migrant children

Becerra was scrutinized by several candidates regarding minors who entered the United States without parents or a guardian, and who lack a lawful immigration status.

How does that relate to Becerra? The Department of Health and Human Services said it “has custody and must provide care” for such minors. These children are cared for until they can be placed with a sponsor, “usually family members,” said the Office of Refugee Resettlement, which is within a division of HHS.

More specifically, the remarks made against Becerra relate to The New York Times investigation in 2023, which reported how numerous unaccompanied migrant children who came to the U.S. were working in violation of child labor laws. Becerra served as secretary of HHS from March 2021 and through the remainder of the Biden administration.

The New York Times reported that HHS “checks on minors by calling them” after they begin living with sponsors, yet “more than 85,000 children” couldn’t be reached “over the last two years.”

“Overall, the agency lost immediate contact with a third of migrant children,” according to the New York Times’ reporting in 2023.

The New York Times said that the agency “had not compromised safety,” and that HHS “wanted to release children swiftly, for the sake of their well-being,” citing an agency spokesperson.

“The references in the New York Times article are to voluntary calls that we make,” Becerra told lawmakers in 2023, adding that they try to reach each child three times, and that they try to reach the sponsor.

“There is no requirement for the sponsor or the child to answer the call and there could be any number of reasons why the children or sponsors may not answer the call but that doesn’t mean that the children are lost and suggesting that any kind of numbers that relate to those calls show that we lost kids is categorically false,” Becerra said.

He also said then that HHS’ “custodial responsibility for unaccompanied children legally ends once we place them in the custody of a vetted sponsor.”

The topic was brought up by Villaraigosa during a NBC4 and Telemundo 52 debate on May 6.

"We protected kids," Becerra said. "We did not let them be abused. Those were the employers."

Xavier Becerra and a former chief of staff

Republican business owner Steve Hilton and Villaraigosa, a Democrat, during a CNN debate brought up a case involving Becerra's former chief of staff that came to light last year.

Authorities claim that Sean McCluskie, Becerra’s former chief of staff, conspired with lobbyist Greg Campbell, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s former chief of staff Dana Williamson, and others to steal approximately $225,000 in funds from a dormant campaign account belonging to Becerra for McCluskie’s personal use.

McCluskie pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud in 2025, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of California. Campbell pled guilty to "one count of conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud, and one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and to commit offenses against the United States," the Eastern District of California said in December.

Williamson was charged with "conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States and obstruct justice, subscribing to false tax returns, and making false statements," according to the Eastern District of California. KCRA and ABC10 reported that Williamson may be facing a plea deal, citing court records.

Becerra hasn’t been charged with any wrongdoing.

Becerra told Hilton to “read the indictment” during his response.

“If I had been involved, the U.S. attorney would have had me in that indictment,” Becerra said. “I was not involved.”

Chad Bianco and Oath Keepers

Among the remarks directed at Bianco was about his former association with the Oath Keepers. The Oath Keepers is a far-right, anti-government group, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center; some of its members were involved the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021.

Bianco paid for a year-long membership in 2014 with the Oath Keepers, The Desert Sun, which is part of the USA TODAY Network, reported in 2021. However, he said then that he wasn’t currently a member and hadn’t extended his membership after the first year.

“Like many other law enforcement officers and veterans who were members, I learned the group did not offer me anything and so I did not continue membership," Bianco said in 2021.

During a CNN debate on May 5, Villaraigosa brought up Bianco’s former connection to the group, leading to back-and-forth on the topic between the two. Bianco said “no” when asked whether he still considered himself to be a member of that group.

Katie Porter and her temperament

“I can’t believe that on a stage with 30 minutes of interrupting and bickering and name calling and shouting and disrespect for everyone up here who’s stepping into public service, that anyone wants to talk about my temperament,” former Rep. Katie Porter said during a CNN debate on May 5.

Last year, Porter made headlines over a 2021 video obtained by Politico that captured the former congresswoman yelling at a staffer to “get out of my f------ shot” and for attempting to exit a CBS News interview.

Porter, a Democrat, has previously faced scrutiny over reported claims of how she has treated staffers.

“Californians can decide for themselves about my temperament based on what they see and hear tonight,” Porter said during the debate. “If these boys bullying and bickering hasn’t been enough to raise questions about their temperament, I would really challenge that.”

Tom Steyer and how he made his money

How Tom Steyer, a billionaire who founded hedge fund Farallon Capital Management, made his wealth has been criticized by several candidates during recent debates; Becerra in particular said during a CNN debate that Steyer made his wealth through “investing in fossil fuels” and “helping fund private, for-profit prisons.” The former is the topic of recent reporting from The New York Times, and the latter issue was reported on by the Los Angeles Times and the Fresno Bee.

Steyer, a Democrat, stepped down from Farallon in 2012. The Los Angeles Times reported how, at least in one instance, Steyer’s team has made a clear distinction between the governor hopeful and Farallon Capital — that it was the hedge fund, not the person, who invested in what is formerly known as Corrections Corporation of America.

During a CNN debate, Steyer pointed to receiving endorsements from environmentalist groups and described himself as the person fighting oil companies.

“The way that you know is they’re spending millions of dollars to prevent me from getting elected,” Steyer said.

See latest polls for California governor race

A poll conducted for California Back To Basics, an independent expenditure committee that supports Mahan, found that Becerra and Hilton are tied at 20% ahead of the primary election. The poll, conducted between May 3-6, also found:

• Bianco: 14%
• Steyer: 12%
• Mahan: 10%
• Undecided: 8%

Porter, Villaraigosa and California State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, a Democrat, are in the single-digits, according to the poll.

A SurveyUSA poll released on Monday, May 4 found that 20% of voters would cast their ballot for Hilton if the primary election was held today. Following him was Steyer at 18%. The only other two candidates to get double-digit support were Bianco and Becerra.

Meanwhile, a different poll shared by the California Democratic Party on May 4 found that 18% of likely voters would cast their ballot for Hilton if the primary election was held today. However, 18% of likely voters would also support Becerra; the former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services beat Steyer, who has frequently led among his fellow Democratic candidates in the polls.

When is the primary election in California?

The primary election will be held on June 2, where the two top vote-getters for governor, regardless of political party, will move on to the general election on Nov. 3.

How to check if you’re registered to vote

Not sure if you are already registered to vote? You can check on the California Secretary of State’s website by submitting your name, date of birth and a few other pieces of information.

Paris Barraza is a reporter covering Los Angeles and Southern California for the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at [email protected].