The general election for Governor of California will take place on Nov. 8, 2022. In total, candidates running for California governor have raised $14.0 million, received no loans, and spent $15.4 million between Jan. 1, 2021, and May 21, 2022.
While certified results from the open primary are still pending, here’s the breakdown for the two candidates who are projected to advance to the general election:
Active Gubernatorial Candidates’ Campaign Finance, 1/1/2021- 5/21/2022
| Candidate | Party | Contributions | Loans | Expenditures |
| Gavin Newsom (Incumbent) | Democratic | $9,378,324.45 | $0.00 | $9,971,540.51 |
| Brian Dahle | Republican | $1,493,967.90 | $0.00 | $1,632,054.35 |
The remaining $3.1 million raised in the race for California governor went to candidates who are not projected to advance to the general election or have withdrawn. There were 26 active candidates in the open primary for California governor.
Total fundraising in nine gubernatorial races in the 2022 election cycle
A number of factors, including whether an incumbent officeholder is running for re-election and number of candidates in a race, can influence donor activity. Here is how total fundraising by all candidates for California governor compares to the eight other gubernatorial races with campaign finance data available from Transparency USA for the 2022 election cycle:
| Rank | State | Total Donations | Total Candidates | Active Candidates | Election Stage | Available Reporting Period |
| 1 | Florida | $106,753,115 | 12 | 10 | Primary Election | 1/1/2021 – 3/31/2022 |
| 2 | Texas | $72,717,055 | 24 | 5 | General Election | 1/1/2021 – 5/14/2022 |
| 3 | Pennsylvania | $55,727,674 | 20 | 5 | General Election | 1/1/2021 – 6/16/2022 |
| 4 | Arizona | $24,376,884 | 15 | 12 | Primary Election | 1/1/2021 – 3/31/2022 |
| 5 | Ohio | $22,113,468 | 9 | 5 | General Election | 1/1/2021 – 6/3/2022 |
| 6 | Michigan | $20,716,429 | 16 | 7 | Primary Election | 1/1/2021 – 4/20/2022 |
| 7 | California | $13,997,678 | 32 | 2 | General Election | 1/1/2021 – 5/21/2022 |
| 8 | Wisconsin | $13,933,407 | 10 | 9 | Primary Election | 1/1/2021 – 3/13/2022 |
| 9 | Minnesota | $8,263,072 | 14 | 11 | Primary Election | 1/1/2021 – 3/30/2022 |
The data above are based on campaign finance reports that active California candidate PACs submitted to the California Secretary of State. Transparency USA publishes campaign finance data following major reporting deadlines. State or federal law may require filers to submit additional reports.
| Report Name | Due Date |
| Semiannual | 1/31/2022 |
| 1st Pre-Election – Primary | 4/28/2022 |
| 2nd Pre-Election – Primary | 5/26/2022 |
| Semiannual | 8/1/2022 |
| 1st Pre-Election – General | 9/29/2022 |
| 2nd Pre- Election – General | 10/27/2022 |
| Semiannual | 1/31/2023 |
This article is a joint publication from Ballotpedia and Transparency USA, who are working together to provide campaign finance information for state-level elections. Learn more about our work here.
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