Biden’s Health Secretary Joins the Governor’s Race in California

Xavier Becerra, a former Biden cabinet secretary who led California’s legal battles against President Trump’s first-term agenda, announced a run for California governor on Wednesday, setting up a potential clash with former Vice President Kamala Harris.

She is considering running for governor, scrambling the 2026 contest to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom, who cannot run again because of term limits. Mr. Becerra’s announcement creates a potential scenario in which two Democrats, both of whom were in the same presidential cabinet and both of whom served as California attorney general, battle for the state’s top job.

Mr. Becerra said he decided to run even if Ms. Harris does too.

“What I can tell you with full confidence is, it doesn’t matter who gets in — I’m in,” he said in an interview.

The ties between Mr. Becerra and Ms. Harris date back to the aftermath of the 2016 election, when they effectively traded jobs. She had been California’s attorney general and was elected to the U.S. Senate that year. He had been a congressman and was appointed attorney general after Ms. Harris resigned to join the Senate. They amicably helped each other transition into those jobs, Mr. Becerra said.

By the time Mr. Becerra was confirmed for his cabinet position in 2021, Ms. Harris was vice president. She administered his oath of office.

“My wife held the Bible, and she swore me in,” Mr. Becerra recalled of Ms. Harris.

As members of the Biden cabinet, they worked together frequently on issues related to women’s health care and reproductive rights, and during the 2024 presidential election Mr. Becerra campaigned for Ms. Harris.