Billionaire philanthropist and former hedge fund manager Tom Steyer announced Wednesday that he is running for California governor, becoming the most prominent San Franciscan to join the crowded 2026 field.
In a video announcing his campaign, Steyer, 68, a climate activist (opens in new tab) who earned his fortune as the founder of Farallon Capital and his fame as an advocate for President Donald Trump’s impeachment, focused on California’s affordability crisis and pledged to solve the problems he attributes to rising costs, including the housing shortage and corporations not paying their “fair share.”
“The richest people in America think that they earned everything themselves. Bullshit, man,” Steyer said in the video. “That’s so ridiculous.”
A liberal Democrat who last ventured into politics with a 2020 bid for president (opens in new tab), Steyer was long expected to join the race to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom, who terms out of office next year.
The field includes high-profile Democrats such as former Orange County Rep. Katie Porter, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, and former California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, as well as Republicans Steve Hilton, a former Fox News host, and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco.
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Steyer’s deep pockets could make him a formidable candidate and give him the opportunity to introduce himself to large swaths of the state who might be unfamiliar with his activism.
Steyer over the last 15 years has championed several California ballot measure campaigns that took aim at oil companies, big corporations, and the tobacco industry.
“I wanted to build a business here. Now it’s worth billions of dollars. And I walked away from it because I wanted to give back to California,” he said in his announcement.
He most recently dumped $12 million (opens in new tab) into the effort to pass Newsom’s redistricting measure Proposition 50 in the Nov. 4 special election. His efforts rankled some within his party, who saw the spending as a self-serving attention grab (opens in new tab) in preparation for a likely campaign announcement.
Steyer said his goals are to make it easier to live in the Golden State, and he promised to drive a housing boom and lower electricity costs by breaking up the “monopolistic power of utilities,” while bolstering the state’s education system.
“Let’s get down to brass tacks,” he said. “Californians deserve a life they can afford. But the Californians who make this state run are being run over by the cost of living. We need to get back to basics.”
As someone with a history of disrupting the Democratic status quo, Steyer said he would take on Sacramento politicians who are “afraid to change up the system.”
“I’m not,” he said. “They’re going to hate this.”