SACRAMENTO —  When he was running for governor in 2017, Gavin Newsom tapped into the simmering rage of California liberals, at one point boasting on the campaign trail: “You want resistance to Donald Trump? Boy, bring it on, Donald.”

That swagger helped Newsom cruise to election in 2018 and crystallized his reputation as a national leader of the anti-Trump resistance.

Whether California’s next governor will follow Newsom’s lead is less clear.

The crowded field of Democrats running to succeed Newsom in 2026, and others weighing campaigns, are still triangulating how best to position themselves against President-elect Trump — and whether that’s a posture that California voters even want.

Some candidates have echoed Newsom with a strident tone. The week Trump was reelected, Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta, who is considering a run for governor, stood in front of the Golden Gate Bridge and vowed use “the full force of the law” to defend Californians against the new administration.

“If Trump attacks your rights: I’ll be there,” Bonta said. “If Trump comes after your freedoms: I’ll be there. If Trump jeopardizes your safety and well-being: I’ll be there.”

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, who entered the governor’s race last year, said the state would fight any efforts by the Trump administration to undo LGBTQ+ student protections or dismantle the U.S. Department of Education. And Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis promised in a social media post that California will “never waver in our protection of the freedom to control our bodies, to marry who we love and to create opportunities for immigrants and ALL our families.”

The slight rightward shift of California’s voters this year has given other candidates pause. Preliminary election results suggest that several counties won by President Biden in 2020 tilted toward Trump this year, including San Bernardino County in Southern California, Butte County in Northern California, and a broad swath of the San Joaquin Valley through Merced, Fresno and Stanislaus counties, a Times analysis shows.

Voters also handed resounding losses to the criminal justice reform movement, voting Dist. Attys. George Gascón and Pamela Price out of office and approving a tough-on-crime ballot initiative with overwhelming support.

“Is firing up the Trump resistance really the right move given what has just happened?” said Sarah Anzia, a political scientist and public policy professor at UC Berkeley. “I would think this would call for some introspection and consideration of why Trump has grown in popularity in a state like this.”

Former state controller Betty Yee, who entered the gubernatorial race in March, has pointed in fundraising emails to the state’s “shift toward Trump.” As the statewide vote continues to be tallied, the shift appears to be just shy of 5 points; Biden won 63.5% of California voters in 2020. Harris currently has 58.6%.

“That’s a fairly significant slide right, and while it’s easy to chalk up the votes of millions of Californians to hate or falling for Trump’s deception, the fact is that more young people and more Black and Latino families voted for Trump than ever before,” Yee wrote.

In another message, she wrote that “Latinos of all ages, and young people — the literal future of California, two groups that politicians have leaned on for decades — turned away from the Democratic Party in a historically poor showing this election.”

Navigating those subtle shifts in the electorate may be tricky, however, and overcorrecting too far to the right may prove just as treacherous.

Although he performed better in California in 2024 than 2020, Trump remains very unpopular with most Golden State voters. Historically, the party not in the White House also makes big gains in the next general election — which will be 2026, when Californian’s will elect a new governor. So attacking Trump may be fruitful.

Toni Atkins, the former state senate leader who is among a half-dozen candidates who have launched their 2026 gubernatorial campaigns, described the focus on Trump as a sort of necessary evil.

Everyone is jumping on “the anti-Trump bandwagon,” she said, which is a distraction from major California issues such as the rising cost of living — but critical to the state’s ethos.

Atkins was the leader of the state Senate during the first Trump administration, and led the campaign for Proposition 1, which enshrined abortion rights in the state constitution after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.

She said Trump’s reelection changes “the whole nature of this run for governor.”

“We need to be worried about what it means for California,” she said, “because he came at us the first time.”

California sued the federal government more than 100 times during the first Trump administration, challenging the president’s authority on immigration, healthcare, education, gun control, consumer protection, the census, the U.S. Postal Service, civil rights issues and other topics.

On the campaign trail, Trump has recently derided Newsom as “Newscum” and called California and its Democratic leaders “radical left lunatics.” He’s also zeroed in on some of the state’s highest-profile leaders, including Senator-elect Adam Schiff and Rep. Nancy Pelosi, calling them “enemies from within.”

But California still needs the White House’s support in many areas, including health insurance for low-income residents that requires federal healthcare waivers, and emergency disaster funding during natural disasters like wildfires.

In a poll conducted by UC Berkeley’s Institute of Governmental Studies and co-sponsored by The Times in late October, more than half of registered voters said they had no preference among the candidates who have already entered the race. Among those who do, their favorites haven’t yet announced their campaigns.

U.S. Rep. Katie Porter (D-Irvine), who has not said whether she will run, would be the first or second choice of 13% of voters, the poll found. Two Republicans said to be weighing campaigns, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and state Sen. Brian Dahle, who ran against Newsom in 2022, were the first or second choice of 12% and 11% of registered voters, respectively.

Kounalakis and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa each have 7% support, and so does Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, who has not said whether he will run. Republican commentator Steve Hilton, also said to be weighing a bid, would be the first or second choice of 6% of voters.

Thurmond, Atkins and Yee had support from fewer than 5% of registered voters.

While the political environment for the 2026 campaign appears to be in flux, there may be lessons from the last time Californians picked a governor while Trump was in the White House.

In 2018, Villaraigosa ran a campaign that hewed toward the middle, focusing on equal access to education, fiscal restraint and his strong record as mayor on supporting law enforcement and protecting the environment. Newsom campaigned on a bedrock liberal and expensive agenda, including proposals for a state-sponsored healthcare system, universal preschool and increased funding for higher education.

Villaraigosa failed to make it out of the primary. Newsom won back-to-back terms.

President-elect Trump announced a slew of appointments as his team prepares to transition to the White House next year. 

The incoming president announced Jamieson Greer as his pick to serve as the next U.S. trade representative. Greer previously served as chief of staff to the trade representative during Trump’s first term, Robert Lighthizer at a time when the administration implemented tariffs on China and other nations. 

In announcing Greer’s nomination, Trump said in a statement that Greer was instrumental in his first term in imposing tariffs on China and others and replacing the trade agreement with Canada and Mexico, “therefore making it much better for American Workers.”

If confirmed by the Senate, Greer would be responsible for negotiating directly with foreign governments on trade deals and disputes, as well as memberships in international trade bodies such as the World Trade Organization.

Also nominated will be Jim O’Neill to serve as the deputy secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to work alongside Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has been tapped to lead the agency.

GET TO KNOW DONALD TRUMP’S CABINET: WHO HAS THE PRESIDENT-ELECT PICKED SO FAR?

O’Neill, who served as principal associate deputy secretary of HHS, “will fight in unison to ensure every American, and especially our most precious resource, our children, will live long and healthy lives and, Make America Great and Healthy Again!” said Trump.

Jamieson Greer is President-elect Trump’s pick to serve as U.S. trade representative.  (USCC)

Trump also tapped Vince Haley, who served speechwriter during his campaign, to serve as director of the Domestic Policy Council, and Kevin A. Hassett to lead the White House National Economic Council. 

“I am proud to announce that Vince Haley, who served as Director of Policy and Speechwriting on my Winning Campaign, will lead my Domestic Policy Agenda as Director of the Domestic Policy Council,” Trump said in a statement. 

RFK JR’S ABORTION ‘ISSUE’: SENATE GOP PLANS TO SCRUTINIZE TRUMP HHS PICK’S POSITION

“Vince helped lead the Speechwriting Department in my First Administration, working to convey our message to the Public,” he added. “Prior to joining my 2016 Campaign, he worked for twelve years in a variety of roles for Newt Gingrich, a man who I greatly respect.”

Haley served as policy director and campaign manager for Gingrich’s 2012 presidential campaign. 

Vince Haley during Trump’s podium check at the Fiserv Forum before the start of the session of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, July 17.  (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

In his new role, Haley will lead Trump’s domestic agenda, the incoming president said. 

Economist Kevin Hassett, 62, was named director of the White House National Economic Council, bringing into Trump’s administration a major advocate for tax cuts. He played a crucial role in helping design and pass the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, Trump said. 

He will also “will play an important role in helping American families recover from the inflation that was unleashed by the Biden Administration” and that together they would “renew and improve” the 2017 tax cuts, many of which are set to expire after 2025.

Hassett served in the first Trump term as chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers.

“He will play an important role in helping American families recover from the Inflation that was unleashed by the Biden Administration,” Trump said.

Kevin Hassett, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, speaks to members of the media outside the White House in Washington, D.C. (Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Businessman John Phelan will serve as the next secretary of the Navy as well. Phelan is the co-founder of co-founded MSD Capital.

“His Record of Success speaks for itself — A true Champion of American Enterprise and Ingenuity!” Trump said in a statement.

John Phelan, co-managing partner and co-founder of MSD Capital LP. (Photographer: Peter Foley/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“John will be a tremendous force for our Naval Servicemembers, and a steadfast leader in advancing my America First vision,” Trump said. “He will put the business of the U.S. Navy above all else.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Gearing up for another Trump presidency, Los Angeles County supervisors will funnel millions in funding to beef up support for immigrants and transgender residents, who could be targeted by the incoming administration.

The governing board of the deep-blue county passed a flurry of resistance-themed motions Tuesday in response to the incoming president’s anti-transgender rhetoric and his pledge to carry out mass deportations of immigrants in the country illegally.

“I have a sneaking suspicion this is the first of what will be many [motions] that will come forward as the new administration rolls out their ideas for what will be best for making America great again — or not,” said Supervisor Holly Mitchell, adding that it was “surreal” to find California back on the defense against a Trump administration.

One motion, put forward by Supervisors Hilda Solis and Janice Hahn, asks for $5.5 million in ongoing funding for legal services for immigrants. The motion, which passed 4 to 0, would also create a county task force focused on federal immigration policy and develop a campaign to educate immigrants on their legal rights.

“We know in the coming months it’s going to become more difficult for many of our friends and our neighbors,” said Solis, noting that her office has already seen a ramping up in calls from desperate people in need of legal services. “We’ve seen this playbook — and we know what the consequences can be.”

L.A. County is home to an estimated 800,000 immigrants who live here illegally, according to USC’s Equity Research Institute, or about 1 in 12 county residents.

Supervisor Kathryn Barger, the board’s sole Republican, abstained from the vote after noting there is already an immigration crisis under the Biden administration, with some migrants landing in tents on Skid Row. She said she visited the area recently and met a 15-year-old mother who had just come across the border.

“These families say the conditions on Skid Row are better than what they came from,” said Barger. “I just want to be careful to frame this for what it is — we already have a serious crisis taking place right now.”

Many advocates Tuesday praised the county for moving swiftly to put some money behind its pledge to remain a safe haven for immigrants.

“Sometimes, localities will issue resolutions that just have nice words,” said Shiu-Ming Cheer, deputy director of immigrant and racial justice at the California Immigrant Policy Center, who said her organization met with Solis’ team almost immediately after Donald Trump was elected to suggest additional protections the county could enact. “The county actually has concrete things they will do.”

The city of Los Angeles, meanwhile, is moving forward with a plan to make it a “sanctuary city” by forbidding city employees from being involved in federal immigration enforcement.

L.A. County took a similar step during Trump’s first term, prohibiting county sheriffs from transferring people to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement without a judicial warrant.

But that has done little to ease the fears of many immigrants wary of deportation, advocates told the board Tuesday.

“Since the election, we have heard from numerous families paralyzed by uncertainty,” said Diego Rodrigues, chief operating officer of Alma Family Services, a community organization. “Including children terrified of seeing their parents deported or themselves taken away from the only country they know and love.”

Another motion, from Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, which passed unanimously Tuesday, would create a pilot program to support organizations serving transgender people in L.A. County, funded with $7 million over two years. Such an investment had long been sought by advocacy groups such as the TransLatin@ Coalition, founded by transgender women in L.A.

The pilot program is expected to include $4.5 million for groups that provide a range of services to the “trans, gender-expansive and intersex,” or TGI, community, preferably organizations led by TGI people. A Horvath spokesperson said the money would come from the county general fund.

It will also include $2 million for an outside administrator who will process grant applications and help bolster the training and capacity of organizations that receive the money, as well as $500,000 for a program ombudsperson, according to the proposal.

Outside the county building ahead of Tuesday’s vote, dozens of people rallied and waved flags in support of the transgender “wellness and equity” initiative.

June Paniouchkine, legislative affairs coordinator for the TransLatin@ Coalition, said the money would go to groups that “are going to empower our community — to be housed, to be fed, to be employed, to be healthy, to have equal access” to government resources.

“We know that there’s a political force who are trying to diminish us and devalue us, but we are here to say, ‘Hell, no,’” TransLatina@ Coalition President and Chief Executive Bamby Salcedo said to cheers and shouts.

The move comes as President-elect Trump has argued that the U.S. should recognize only two genders — male and female — that are assigned at birth. He has pledged to stop federal money from being used for gender transition, which could limit access to medical procedures for transgender people who rely on programs such as Medicaid.

And Trump has vowed to cut off Medicaid and Medicare funding to hospitals that provide gender-affirming care to youths. Medicaid and Medicare are major sources of funding for healthcare facilities.

Horvath, who introduced the proposal for the L.A. County pilot program, said it was “about putting action to our words — that we not only stand in solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community, but give them the tools and resources needed to thrive.”

The measure drew little criticism at the Tuesday meeting. One person argued in written comments that the pilot program was discriminatory and that the funding should instead be earmarked to support small-business owners.

Barger said she was not questioning the validity of the proposal but had concerns about the process behind it, including the parameters surrounding which groups could receive funding and how the $7-million figure was reached.

“The real need could be much higher,” said Barger, who ultimately voted with the rest of the board to back the proposal.