Antonio Villaraigosa is confident he will be California’s next governor.

During a stop in Fresno last week, Villaraigosa talked with GV Wire about his plans and why he thinks he will emerge in the November 2026 election to replace termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Villaraigosa — a Democrat, former Los Angeles mayor and former speaker of the Assembly — is campaigning on a platform to reduce the cost of living for housing, utilities, groceries, and gas.

His slogan: “All of the above.”

Gas, Housing, Power

Villaraigosa calls himself an environmentalist, but that doesn’t mean eliminating fossil fuels.

Regarding gasoline, Villaraigosa said, “We’ve made it so difficult for refineries to exist in this state.”

While California has the cleanest fuel in the U.S. and “maybe the world,” California continues to lose refineries. If it does, gas prices could rise to $10 a gallon, he said.

“We need an all-of-the-above approach to energy, an all-of-the-above approach as we take on climate change. And so, yes, we need renewables — solar, wind, geothermal, big hydro, and little hydro. But we also need oil and gas. And we need small nuclear,” Villaraigosa said.

He would even consider a gas tax holiday, an idea floated by GOP legislators.

Housing?

“We don’t build enough of it. We’ve got to build a lot more. That means homeless housing, affordable housing, workforce housing, but also market rate. What do we need to do to bring those costs down? Cut the red tape. Cut the bureaucracy. Streamline an environmental quality act that has, frankly, been an impediment. Because, one, it doesn’t conform to the national one. Two, you can sue from Arizona for a project in California,” Villaraigosa said.

To conform with the state’s mandate to sell only electric vehicles by 2035, Villaraigosa said there needs to be more charging stations.

“We have built 167,000 charging stations. We need 2 million more, and we haven’t built the grid. We don’t have the grid for it. So what I do support is climate action. Let’s have an all-of-the-above approach on energy so we keep our gas prices lower so that we’re not putting it on the backs of working families in the middle class,” Villaraigosa said.

Campaign Momentum?

Poll numbers show that voter enthusiasm is not matching Villaraigosa’s confidence.

A Sept. 19 Emerson College poll shows Villaraigosa with 4%, behind five other candidates, including U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla, who has not announced whether he will run.

Former Rep. Katie Porter, a Democrat, led with 16%, followed by Republican political commentator Steve Hilton at 10%.

The most important polling number might be from the 2018 primary, where Villaraigosa finished third with 13%, behind Newsom and Republican John Cox.

“The race is wide open. I started at 3% and got to 13% (in 2018), but actually it was at 20% before they spent $20 or $30 million pushing back on my candidacy. So what I say to people is I’m going to work hard every single day. I’m going to go to every part of this city and this state and listen to the concerns and aspirations of people,” Villaraigosa said.

What makes him better than Porter?

“I don’t want to just focus on Katie. I’ll focus on all the candidates. I’ve got a record. I’m a proven problem solver,” Villaraigosa said.

He highlighted balancing state budgets with a surplus, authoring legislation expanding health care, and reducing violence in Los Angeles.

Of the major candidates, Villaraigosa has raised $4.5 million according to the Secretary of State’s Power Search website. Billionaire Stephen Cloobeck, a Southern California Democrat, raised $13 million, largely from his own coffers.

Campaign Civility

Villaraigosa said he would continue challenging the Trump administration to “stand up” for California.

“What we’ll do is challenge him where he’s hurting California residents. But what I’m going to do is focus on the problems we created,” Villaraigosa said.

After the assassination of Charlie Kirk — where bipartisan political leaders called for a toning down of rhetoric — Villaraigosa is concerned that the war of words is ramping up again.

“As the shrill, divisive nature of our body politic (grows), I think there’s a lot of people in the middle that want to see us working together, who want us to stop the screaming. And so, yeah, I do think some have reverted to that kind of crass debate that doesn’t respect one another, that doesn’t listen to the other side,” Villaraigosa said.

His style, he said, is to work with other people.