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Your guide to the California attorney general race: Rob Bonta vs. Michael Gates

The race for California attorney general largely snapped into shape in January, when Democratic incumbent Rob Bonta announced he would not run for governor and instead would seek reelection as the state's top law enforcement official.

Several other elected Democrats who'd expressed early interest in running promptly bowed out — which, in a state where registered Democrats outnumber Republicans by nearly a 2-1 margin, primed Bonta for victory and another term vigorously fighting President Trump in the courts.

But he does have challengers.

Who are the candidates?

Attorney General of California Rob Bonta.

Rob Bonta, 53, is a former prosecutor and state legislator whom Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed attorney general in 2021 to replace Xavier Becerra after he left to serve in the Biden administration. In 2022, Bonta won election with nearly 60% of the vote.

Former Huntington Beach City Atty. Michael Gates, 51, is running on a Republican ticket alongside gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton, a Silicon Valley entrepreneur and former Fox News host. Hilton is polling among the top tier of candidates to replace term-limited Newsom.

Running as a Green Party candidate is Marjorie Mikels, an attorney and activist who said in an email to The Times that she wants to end censorship, transition the state to clean, renewable energy and "fight fascism," among other priorities.

What are the major issues?

As in past statewide races in California, Trump's outsize political presence will loom large.

In the last year, Bonta's office has filed more than 60 lawsuits against the Trump administration — challenging Trump's efforts to end birthright citizenship, slash billions in federal funding for California and groups such as Planned Parenthood, halt food assistance for state residents, ban transgender kids' access to gender-affirming healthcare and school sports, deploy National Guard and other military troops into California cities and unilaterally assess tariffs on global trading partners.

Bonta has framed the fight as an existential one for the future of American democracy and rule of law, and cited it as his paramount responsibility when he announced his decision not to run for governor.

"In this moment, my place is here, on the front lines, in the trenches, serving as a bulwark, creating a protection around our state and our people, our values and our progress in the face of these vicious, inhumane, unlawful, cruel attacks from the Trump administration," Bonta said.

Days later, Gates announced his candidacy at the Huntington Beach Pier on a policy platform broadly aligned with Trump's, but a message focused on fixing California's high cost of living and other state problems.

"California has the highest cost of living and the highest taxes, which are crushing families, and Sacramento elites keep scheming for ways to raise our taxes while leaving our streets unsafe for our families and our businesses," Gates said.

Gates projects himself as tough on crime, pro-police and serious about reducing homelessness. He has aligned himself with Trump by backing stricter voter identification laws, alleging massive waste and fraud in state government and opposing transgender kids in girls' sports.

Gates backs the authority of localities such as Huntington Beach to set their own policies, including around elections, zoning, housing and the environment. As city attorney, he repeatedly squared off with Bonta and the state over such issues, recouping millions for the city in one senior housing dispute but losing repeatedly in other cases, including over voter ID rules.

Asked if he generally would align the state with Trump were he to win, Gates said "it's a better question if you ask about specific policies" — but that he supports many of Trump's actions. He wants federal immigration agents out of California neighborhoods but said the best way to ensure that is to undo California's sanctuary policies, not challenge agents' presence and tactics in court as Bonta has done.

Gates hopes Bonta continues his campaign focused on Trump because Californians view that as "out of touch" given the state's more pressing challenges with crime, homelessness and other problems created by liberal policies in Sacramento. Gates would enforce legitimate state and local laws, but also said "Sacramento has been lawless for quite some time" and part of his job would be to "reconcile" such laws with the Constitution. As an example, he cited local policies, including in Los Angeles County, that charge fees or cause delays in issuing concealed-carry firearm permits, which the Trump administration has sued over and which Gates called unconstitutional.

Bonta, in an interview with The Times, said he is proud of his work and plans to run on his record — which he said includes suing the Trump administration every time it violated the law — but also work on a slew of other issues important to Californians, from crime to housing, affordability to the environment.

"We walk and chew gum at the same time," he said. "We're focusing on affordability, and that's top of mind to people. We're focusing on the rule of law and democracy, that's top of mind to people."