Democratic candidates in CA governor race asked to drop out if they aren’t viable, but no one wants to

California’s gubernatorial race is very crowded, and now, Rusty Hicks, the chair of the California Democratic Party, is urging struggling candidates to drop out to avoid splitting votes — which could lead to a Republican governor for the first time in 16 years.

So how did the candidates polling in the single-digits take Hicks’ request? Not great.

“The California Democratic Party is essentially telling every candidate of color in the race for governor to drop out,” said Tony Thurmond in a video his campaign posted on social media. “This act doesn’t reflect the Democratic Party of 2026. Aren’t we supposed to be the party who embraces democracy? A party of, by and for the people. Well, the establishment might not be, but our campaign is, and that’s why we’re in this race, to win it.”

Meanwhile, candidate for governor Betty Yee responded by holding an event in Oakland to file paperwork to place her name on the ballot.

“What the early polls are telling us, and when you look behind the numbers, is close to 50% of the electorate are not paying attention yet on this race,” said Yee.

In his letter, Hicks said it’s not impossible that the two leading Republicans in the race, Steve Hilton and Chad Bianco, could lock out the Democrats after the June primary. He wants the Democratic candidates to assess the viability of their campaigns.

“If you do not have a viable path to make it to the general election, do not file to place your name on the ballot for the primary election,” Hicks wrote. “If you decide to file, be prepared to suspend your campaign and endorse another candidate on or before April 15 if your campaign cannot show meaningful progress towards winning the primary election in the coming weeks.”

Eyewitness News spoke with candidate Tom Steyer about the letter on Tuesday.

“It’s not my role to try and figure out who’s supposed to be running. My role is to try and do the best job to explain why I’m the best person to be the next Governor of California,” Steyer said.

“There is no historical precedent in California politics, either for this crowded a primary field, or for a field with such little clarity,” said Dan Schnur, a political communications lecturer at USC and UC Berkeley. “Only a few percentage points that separate the top several candidates in the race. Once again, it’s easy to see why none of them thinks it’s their responsibility to step aside.”

Schnur says he believes the big Democratic names in the state — like Gavin Newsom, Adam Schiff, Alex Padilla and Nancy Pelosi — will soon, if not already, work behind the scenes to narrow the field.

The deadline for a candidate to file their name on the ballot is Friday, March 6, the same deadline Hicks gave the candidates in his letter.