Democrat Tom Steyer M.B.A ’83 shows strong support across Stanford voters, receiving over 50% of the votes counted so far in the region. Statewide, Steyer is in third behind a neck-and-neck race between Republican candidate Steve Hilton and Democratic candidate Xavier Becerra ’80 J.D. ’84. The top two candidates will advance to the general election in November.

While roughly 66% of the votes cast in Santa Clara County have been counted, Steyer leads the race within Stanford with 51.7%. He’s followed by Becerra with 24.9% and Democratic candidate Katie Porter, who came to speak at Stanford, at 7.7%. Hilton is 5th with 2.8% of the votes. Students could cast their vote at Tresidder Memorial Union on June 2.

The broader Palo Alto area shows different results, with Becerra pulling forward. While Becerra also leads Santa Clara County with 30% of the votes, Hilton narrowly beats out Steyer for second place with 23% compared to Steyer’s 22.3%. 

A former hedge fund manager, Steyer has run on a platform vowing to raise taxes and expand public services if elected. His campaign broke a state record for campaign spending with $216 million invested. Steyer has an estimated net worth of $2.4 billion. He’s a strong advocate for clean energy, but was the chief executive of Farallon Capital, a hedge fund firm that became a large investor in the coal industry. While he stepped down in 2012 and claimed to have requested Farallon separate his funds from the investments into fossil fuels, financial records show he never fully cut ties.

Steyer spoke at the Graduate School of Business’s annual diploma ceremony in 2015. He also funded the TomKat Center for Sustainable Energy, which provides research grants for alternative energy innovations.

Steyer’s brother, James Steyer ’78 J.D. ’83 , is a professor at Stanford and the founder of Common Sense Media. James Steyer taught COMM 3A: Election 2024: Democracy on the Ballot in fall quarter, which brought Hillary Clinton to campus.

Across California, the race is close between Hilton and Becerra, with 27.2% and 26.0% of the votes, respectively. Steyer trails in third with 20.2% of votes, followed by Republican candidate Chad Bianco and Porter. 

Hilton is a former visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution and a former visiting scholar at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies. He also served as a senior advisor to British Prime Minister David Cameron from 2010 to 2012 and was a host on Fox News Channel. Endorsed by U.S. President Donald Trump, Hilton is running in opposition to targeting billionaire wealth, encouraging a flat tax rate.

Becerra served in the U.S. House of Representatives for 12 terms from 1993 to 2017. He also served as California attorney general from 2017 to 2021 and as the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services from 2021 to 2025 under former U.S. President Joe Biden. Becerra calls for more affordable and accessible medical care and a stronger fight against Trump’s actions across several sectors, including healthcare and immigration.

Porter is the leading female candidate in the gubernatorial race, running on affordability and lowering costs. She was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 2019 to 2025 and has received criticism for her aggressive language towards staff.