California gubernatorial candidates’ earnings: What they earned

from Yue Stella YuCalMatters

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We already knew that Democrat Tom Steyer, a billionaire running for governor of California, was rich. But how rich?

In 2024, Steyer and his wife Kat Taylor reported a combined income of $39 million, thanks to the duo’s massive investments in the global stock market. That’s more than all nine of his primary opponents in the governor’s race and their partners have earned this year combined, according to their federal tax returns released this week.

A 2019 state law designed to better inform California voters requires gubernatorial candidates to release their federal tax returns to qualify for the primary ballot in June. Among the main candidates, only Chad Bianco, Matt Mahan, Katie Porter and Tony Thurmond have already filed their 2025 tax returns.

Here are some highlights:

Tom Stair

Revenue: $39 million in 2024, mainly from huge investments in the global stock market. They also made $6 million in passive income in Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Bermuda and the Cayman Islands in 2024. They collected $38,000 in royalties from other properties and earned $23,000 from TomKat Ranch, their 1,800-acre cattle ranch in Pescadero.

Federal taxes paid: $5.4 million in 2024 — 54 times the average annual household income in California.

Their earnings fluctuate with the market: in 2021, they reported $160 million in investment income and paid $39 million in taxes. But in 2022, they earned a paltry $8 million and paid out $1 million.

The couple regularly file tax returns in dozens of countries each year (19 in 2024) and pay taxes abroad as well. Steyer also has a UK bank account that at one point had a balance of $61 million in 2024.

The two are big on philanthropy, donating $18 million in 2024, including $3 million in stock to Yale University and $1.5 million in stock to the TomKat Foundation, the couple’s nonprofit philanthropy.

Steve Hilton

Earnings: $7.5 million in 2024, including $250,000 from Fox News and $6.7 million made by his wife Rachel Whetstone as chief communications officer at Netflix. The couple also earned $360,000 from global investments, but reported a net loss of $3,000 from capital gains.

The couple received another $25,000 that year in rent from three properties in London, including two flats in the trendy Camden area. Hilton, a Republican, reported losing more than $226,000 from his media company, CR Productions.

Federal taxes paid: $2.8 million in 2024.

Eric Swalwell

Income: $461,000 in 2024, including his $184,000 congressional salary and $247,000 from his wife Brittany’s consulting work. The couple had a $41,000 home mortgage interest deduction in 2024. The challengers disputed the seat of the Democrat in Californiaalthough he lists a Bay Area rental as his primary residence.

Federal taxes paid: $83,000 in 2024.

Katie Porter

Income: $300,000 in 2025, almost all from her salary as a law professor at UC Irvine. Porter, a Democrat, also collects royalties from book sales: She made $140,000 in 2023 from books she’s authored, including two textbooks and her memoir, “I Swear: Politics Is Worse Than My Minivan,” published the same year. She earned $18,000 in 2024 and $3,500 last year from royalties.

Federal taxes paid: $58,000 in 2025.

Chad Bianco

Income: $590,000 in 2025, jointly with wife Denise Bianco. Bianco’s return doesn’t break the Republican’s payroll, but his base salary as sheriff was $348,000 in 2024 after the Riverside County Board of Supervisors gave him a 27 percent raise in May.

He already was the highest paid sheriff in the state in 2023, earning more than $593,000 in total compensation, which includes benefits such as a pension and health coverage.

Federal taxes paid: $127,000 in 2025.

Xavier Becerra

Income: $490,000 in 2024, with wife Carolyn Reyes, a UC Davis physician. That includes Becerra’s nearly $250,000 salary at the time as U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services in the Biden administration. The couple rented out four single-family homes, netting them a net profit of $110,000.

Federal taxes paid: $116,000 in 2024.

Tony Thurmond

Income: $309,000 in 2025 — $203,000 as superintendent of public instruction and $18,000 from Integrated Community Services, a San Rafael-based disability service where he worked as a support aide, one of several side jobs the Democrat has held. Wife Vanessa Viarco earned $87,000 as community engagement manager with KVCR Public Media at San Bernardino Community College.

Federal taxes paid: $52,000 in 2025.

Antonio Villaraigosa

Revenue: $1.4 million in 2024, most of which comes from Actum, a business consulting firm with offices around the world, including Los Angeles and Sacramento, and his own firm, Antonio Villaraigosa LLC. He also received a $125,000 pension as a former Democratic mayor of Los Angeles. He and his wife, Patricia, filed their taxes separately.

Federal taxes paid: $462,000 in 2024.

Betty Yee

Earnings: $211,000 in 2024, almost all of which comes from pensions and Social Security. Yee, a Democrat, reported $1,300 in consulting and teaching income, and her husband, Stephen Jacobs, a rabbi, reported no income. The couple received $54,000 from the sale of the timeshare in October 2024. In 2021, the couple also reported $3,400 of gambling income in 2021.

Yee, who was California comptroller until January 2023, was paid an annual salary of approximately $157,000 in 2022 and $13,000 in 2023 when the job ends in January.

Federal taxes paid: $24,000 in 2024.

Matt Mahan

Income: $507,000 in 2025, including his $226,000 San Jose mayoral salary and his wife Sylvia Skandar Mahan’s $267,000 salary as president of Cristo Rey San Jose High School. In 2024, the couple claimed $14,000 in clean energy credits for using solar-powered electricity.

Federal taxes paid: $99,000 in 2025.

Jeanne Kuang and Juliet Williams of CalMatters contributed reporting.

This article was originally published on CalMatters and is republished under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives license.