Billionaire Steyer Storms California Governor Race: Vows to Upend Status Quo

Paul Riverbank, 11/20/2025Billionaire Tom Steyer shakes up California governor race with bold housing, affordability, and reform promises.

It wouldn’t be California politics without a crowded field, of course, but it’s rare to see someone as deep-pocketed—and recognizable—as Steyer join the list. The activists know him. So do finance circles. He’s spent years writing enormous checks to environmental causes (his name is all over NextGen America), driving impeachment campaigns, bankrolling political ads, and, notably, burning through a quarter-billion dollars trying to grab the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination. That didn’t pan out, but Steyer’s hunger for public influence never seemed to fade.

This time around, affordability is his rallying cry. Not carbon cuts or impeachment. Steyer’s argument is straightforward: ordinary Californians are being priced out of their own lives, and timid politicians haven’t done much to help. His answer? One million new homes in four years—an almost audacious number. He promises to slash electric bills by a quarter and tear apart outdated utility monopolies, telling voters they deserve more choice in who powers their homes. There’s a confident swagger in how he delivers these lines, like a man who’s spent years fighting in conference rooms and isn’t interested in waiting for permission.

Ask anyone who’s tried, and they’ll tell you: building affordable housing in California is like trying to sprint through deep sand. Sky-high permit costs, endless zoning fights, construction delays—Steyer claims he’ll cut through all that. “The largest drive to build homes that you can afford in the history of California,” he calls it. Whether it’s bluster or blueprint remains an open question, but at least he’s naming numbers and dates—something Sacramento often avoids.

Of course, no campaign in this state slips by without critics poking at the résumé. Environmentalists nod to Steyer’s millions spent on fighting climate change, but then there’s Farallon Capital, the hedge fund where he made his fortune—a chunk of which once came from fossil fuel ventures. The duality is tricky. His defenders say he got out and put his wealth to better use, but detractors eye the contradictions. It’s a shadow that follows him, even as he raises banners against corporate power.

Look past Steyer and the field is a study in California’s contrasts. There’s former U.S. Rep. Katie Porter, who’s turned viral whiteboard explainers into progressive stardom; ex-LA mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, a mainstay in city politics; Riverside Sheriff Chad Bianco, a Republican betting that law-and-order plays outside LA; one-time health czar Xavier Becerra; even Steve Hilton, an ex-Fox News figure looking for the mainstream spotlight. No matter how you slice it, this is no sleepy contest. After the Schwarzenegger years, Democrats have dominated—yet, with housing and homelessness at emergency levels, 2026 could mean surprises.

Steyer’s style, however, divides observers. Brian Sobel, whose pundit bona fides stretch back decades, warns it’s not enough to set yourself up as the anti-Trump or the billionaire with bite. Steyer needs to land on policies that connect—and do it without drifting into bombast for its own sake. The Prop 50 campaign, his cheeky anti-Trump ads: they showed he knows how to headline, but wading into the nuts and bolts of governance will require more than punchlines. People here want lower rent, not just rhetorical fireworks.

As the race throttles up, Steyer’s opening bid—“We need to get back to basics”—frames a campaign attempting to bridge populist frustration and ambitious technocrat. Will California’s voters respond to a billionaire outsider making audacious promises, or are they looking for something steadier, less theatrical? Steyer’s campaign will test whether money and celebrity can overcome skepticism in a state that’s seen it all before. The only certainty: this is one to watch, messiness and all.

Tom Steyer is back in the political fray, and if you’ve flipped on a California news channel recently or checked your social feeds, you probably saw the clip: a billionaire in a work shirt, sleeves rumpled, taking shots at “the richest people in America” for thinking they built their own empires. “Bulls--- man. That’s so ridiculous,” he says, pausing just long enough to let the line land. For Steyer, this campaign for governor is more than a policy pitch—it’s a brawl with the status quo.It wouldn’t be California politics without a crowded field, of course, but it’s rare to see someone as deep-pocketed—and recognizable—as Steyer join the list. The activists know him. So do finance circles. He’s spent years writing enormous checks to environmental causes (his name is all over NextGen America), driving impeachment campaigns, bankrolling political ads, and, notably, burning through a quarter-billion dollars trying to grab the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination. That didn’t pan out, but Steyer’s hunger for public influence never seemed to fade.This time around, affordability is his rallying cry. Not carbon cuts or impeachment. Steyer’s argument is straightforward: ordinary Californians are being priced out of their own lives, and timid politicians haven’t done much to help. His answer? One million new homes in four years—an almost audacious number. He promises to slash electric bills by a quarter and tear apart outdated utility monopolies, telling voters they deserve more choice in who powers their homes. There’s a confident swagger in how he delivers these lines, like a man who’s spent years fighting in conference rooms and isn’t interested in waiting for permission.Ask anyone who’s tried, and they’ll tell you: building affordable housing in California is like trying to sprint through deep sand. Sky-high permit costs, endless zoning fights, construction delays—Steyer claims he’ll cut through all that. “The largest drive to build homes that you can afford in the history of California,” he calls it. Whether it’s bluster or blueprint remains an open question, but at least he’s naming numbers and dates—something Sacramento often avoids.Of course, no campaign in this state slips by without critics poking at the résumé. Environmentalists nod to Steyer’s millions spent on fighting climate change, but then there’s Farallon Capital, the hedge fund where he made his fortune—a chunk of which once came from fossil fuel ventures. The duality is tricky. His defenders say he got out and put his wealth to better use, but detractors eye the contradictions. It’s a shadow that follows him, even as he raises banners against corporate power.Look past Steyer and the field is a study in California’s contrasts. There’s former U.S. Rep. Katie Porter, who’s turned viral whiteboard explainers into progressive stardom; ex-LA mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, a mainstay in city politics; Riverside Sheriff Chad Bianco, a Republican betting that law-and-order plays outside LA; one-time health czar Xavier Becerra; even Steve Hilton, an ex-Fox News figure looking for the mainstream spotlight. No matter how you slice it, this is no sleepy contest. After the Schwarzenegger years, Democrats have dominated—yet, with housing and homelessness at emergency levels, 2026 could mean surprises.Steyer’s style, however, divides observers. Brian Sobel, whose pundit bona fides stretch back decades, warns it’s not enough to set yourself up as the anti-Trump or the billionaire with bite. Steyer needs to land on policies that connect—and do it without drifting into bombast for its own sake. The Prop 50 campaign, his cheeky anti-Trump ads: they showed he knows how to headline, but wading into the nuts and bolts of governance will require more than punchlines. People here want lower rent, not just rhetorical fireworks.As the race throttles up, Steyer’s opening bid—“We need to get back to basics”—frames a campaign attempting to bridge populist frustration and ambitious technocrat. Will California’s voters respond to a billionaire outsider making audacious promises, or are they looking for something steadier, less theatrical? Steyer’s campaign will test whether money and celebrity can overcome skepticism in a state that’s seen it all before. The only certainty: this is one to watch, messiness and all.