Longtime San Diego legislator Toni Atkins announced Monday she was bowing out of the 2026 race to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is termed out.
Atkins, a former San Diego City Council woman, acting mayor, assemblywoman, Speaker of the Assembly and President pro tempore of the California State Senate, announced her gubernatorial candidacy in January 2024.
In announcing her withdrawal from the governor’s race, she said she will continue to fight against the politics of President Donald Trump.
“My intention was to build on that progress, to bring real solutions from day one, and to do good work for the people. That’s why it’s with such a heavy heart that I’m stepping aside today as a candidate for governor,” Atkins wrote in a letter to supporters. “Despite the strong support we’ve received and all we’ve achieved, there is simply no viable path forward to victory. Though my campaign is ending, I will keep fighting for California’s future.
“With Donald Trump and his allies threatening everything we’ve worked for — gutting health care, cratering our economy, and stripping away fundamental rights and freedoms — we’ve got to make sure California has a Democratic governor leading the fight, and that means uniting as Democrats.”
In August 2023, Atkins announced she would step down as Senate president pro tem — planned for early next month. She is the first person in more than 150 years to have held both that job and the position of Speaker of the California State Assembly — which she held from 2014-2016 before being elected to the Senate.
California, though my campaign for governor is coming to an end, the fight continues.Thank you. pic.twitter.com/IMVcRipGby
— Toni G. Atkins (@toniatkins) September 29, 2025Atkins grew up in rural Appalachian Virginia and moved to California in 1985.
She was elected to the San Diego City Council in 2000 and was acting mayor for six months in 2005 following the resignation of Dick Murphy. She has also filled in for the governor temporarily when he was out of state. Atkins was elected to the Assembly in 2010 and became Majority Leader less than two years later. She is termed out from running for the Senate again.
According to an August poll by Emerson College, Atkins was polling at around 2%, while former Rep. Katie Porter led all Democrats in a crowded field at 18% — up from 12% in a similar poll in April. Republican Steve Hilton led candidates from the other side of the aisle with 12% in the poll.
“With Kamala Harris officially out of the race, Katie Porter has emerged as the Democratic frontrunner, increasing her support from 12% to 18% since the April Emerson poll,” said Spencer Kimball, executive director of Emerson College Polling. “Steve Hilton, who was not in the race in April, has jumped to 12%, while the share of undecided voters has dropped from 54% to 38% over the summer. Porter leads among voters over 50 (22%), those with a postgraduate degree (35%), and white voters (23%).”
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