Katie Porter doubled down on her visceral hatred of President Donald Trump during the California gubernatorial debate on Tuesday night. The former Congresswoman and current Democratic gubernatorial candidate in California was asked by moderator Kaitlan Collins about a recent fundraising email sent by her campaign which had the subject line, 'F*** Trump'. The email later went on to say 'we're going to kick Trump's a** in November.'
'Will F-Trump be your guiding principle in dealing with the president,' Collins probed. Porter replied after a drawn-out answer, 'If he's going to attack California, yeah, F him.'
Porter was among seven candidates who took the stage for Tuesday night's debate on CNN. She was joined by Republicans Chad Bianco and Steve Hilton and Democrats Tom Steyer, Xavier Becerra, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.
Porter has garnered between 8 and 20 percent across the five most recent polls in the gubernatorial race. Steyer and Becerra are neck and neck at the top of the field per most polls, with Hilton also near the top. Hilton also has the Trump endorsement.
In a 2025 interview, Porter famously rejected 40 percent of Californians who voted for Trump, approximately 6.1 million people, claiming that she did not need their support.
The date of the California primary is less than a month away, set to be held on June 2nd. The top two voter-getters advance to the general election regardless of party.
In a later clash, Porter taunted GOP gubernatorial candidate Chad Bianco - Riverside County's sitting sheriff - telling him to 'cowboy up, cupcake.'
Katie Zacharia, a California native who served as Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman under Trump, told The Daily Mail on Tuesday she was unsurprised by Porter's outburst. 'Nobody should be shocked by the level of vituperation that Katie Porter is willing to engage in to denigrate her opponents or the President of the United States, look how she treated her husband with scalding hot mashed potatoes and the abusive treatment of her staff,' Zacharia said.
In an interview with CBS California reporter Julia Watts, Porter pushed back on questions about appealing to Trump voters and branded the tone of the exchange 'unnecessarily argumentative.' The now-viral clip saw Watts press Porter on Governor Gavin Newsom's bid to redistrict California in Democrats' favour, and what she would say to California Trump voters whom, Watts insisted, she would 'need to win.' Porter was having none of it. Furrowing her brow, she shot back: 'How would I need them in order to win, ma'am?'
Watts stood her ground. 'Unless you think you're going to get 60 percent of the vote. You think you'll get 60 percent? Everyone who did not vote for Trump will vote for you?' the reporter pressed. Porter laughed before replying: 'If it is me versus a Republican? I think that I will win the people who did not vote for Trump.' Watts then reminded Porter that California operates a jungle primary, in which candidates from all parties compete, with only the top two advancing to the general election, meaning Porter could yet face a fellow Democrat.
Porter's latest ad pokes fun at her viral meltdown, but has also been panned online.
The California gubernatorial field was blown wide open after former Congressman Eric Swalwell quit the race in April following allegations that he had sexually assaulted a woman who worked under him. Steyer and Becerra have since risen to the top of the pack — with the contest raising the prospect that both general election finalists could come from the same party.
Steyer has been hammering Becerra with attack ads for weeks, but tonight's CNN debate marks his first real opportunity to take that fight directly to the former health secretary on a national stage. A new California Democratic Party poll showed Becerra leading Steyer by 6 points at 18 percent support. The showing is notable because the survey was conducted after Steyer's ads began airing, suggesting the attacks have so far failed to dent Becerra's standing.
Steyer has gone after Becerra on several fronts - his HHS tenure, a corruption scandal involving a former chief of staff (Becerra himself has not been implicated), and ties to oil industry money, but had conspicuously avoided direct confrontation during two previous televised debates.
Swalwell has been accused of sexual misconduct by at least five women, including a former staffer who alleged that Swalwell, who is married, raped her twice when she was too intoxicated to consent, in 2019 and 2024. She is one of four women who have made allegations against the Democrat. Swalwell then announced he was suspending his campaign, saying he was 'deeply sorry for mistakes in judgment I've made in my past,' while disputing what he called 'false allegations' against him.
