Former Democratic Rep. Katie Porter received a major boost in her race to become California’s next governor after former Vice President Kamala Harris declined to mount a gubernatorial campaign — and its showing in the polls.

With Harris out of the race, Porter has become the Democratic frontrunner to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) with over a year left before the 2026 gubernatorial election.

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After losing the Oval Office to President Donald Trump during the 2024 presidential election, Harris was widely believed to be exploring a gubernatorial bid in her home state. Her announcement last month telling voters she had decided against doing so opened up the field to a number of candidates, particularly Porter. 

Of voters who had backed a potential Harris gubernatorial campaign before she backed out of the race, 30% now plan to support Porter, according to new polling from the Politico-Citrin Center-Possibility Lab survey. 

Porter’s “gains from Harris are probably a combination of just being better known and having a clear ideological stamp,” Jack Citrin, a political science professor at UC Berkeley and partner on the poll, said. “She has a particular progressive stamp — more than the other two guys — and I think that’s part of her appeal.”r

Porter entered the race on March 11 and has led the pack of Democratic candidates vying for the primary win that includes Former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and former Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis was also a contender before suspending her campaign on Aug. 8.

Still, Porter and other candidates were held back as speculation for months fomented that Harris was toying with the idea of campaigning for the governor’s mansion. Porter repeatedly said Harris would have a “powerful field-clearing effect” if she entered the race. 

WITH HARRIS OUT, WHICH DEMOCRATS ARE LEFT STANDING FOR CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR BID?

Aside from the boost Porter has seen given Harris’s recent announcement declining to run, Villaraigosa also experienced a bump, with 16% of Harris supporters backing him, while another 11% transferred their support to Becerra.

The survey was conducted from July 28 and Aug. 12 among 875 voters and had a margin of error of 2.6%.