Becerra Backs Arts Investment, Housing Emergency Ahead of Primary, Says Single-Payer Health Care Position Unchanged

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Xavier Becerra said California should restore investments in arts, culture, music and science programs, telling Inland Empire Community News that children need creative opportunities that help expand their minds beyond traditional classroom instruction.

Becerra made the comments May 27 during a half-hour virtual interview hosted by American Community Media as part of its California Gubernatorial Race Series, held days before the Tuesday, June 2, primary election. The interview, moderated by ACoM Associate Editor Pilar Marrero, gave community and ethnic media reporters a chance to question Becerra on immigration, health care, affordability, housing and other statewide issues.

IECN asked Becerra about California’s per capita arts funding, citing figures that place the state at about 80 cents per person and 35th nationally, compared with states such as Florida at about $2 per capita.

“I’ve not seen those statistics, so I can’t comment on them directly,” Becerra said. “But what I will tell you is this: One of the things that lets our children grow, be successful and become tremendous assets to our country is when we let their brains flourish.”

Becerra said arts, entertainment, music and science programs are central to helping children explore, learn and develop beyond traditional classroom subjects, particularly those from disadvantaged families who may not otherwise have access to those resources.

“I believe we have to restore the investments in our arts and culture, and the music programs and science programs that let our kids explore well beyond just the three R’s,” Becerra said. “I am absolutely fully invested as the future governor to make sure that our children have an opportunity to expand their minds.”

The June 2 primary includes 61 candidates for governor, though statewide attention has focused on a smaller group. On the Democratic side, that includes Becerra, Tom Steyer, Katie Porter, Matt Mahan, Tony Thurmond and Antonio Villaraigosa. On the Republican side, Steve Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco have drawn major attention. Under California’s top-two primary system, the two candidates who receive the most votes, regardless of party, will advance to the November election.

The May 27 interview was the second time in recent months IECN covered Becerra in an Inland Empire election setting. In November 2025, Becerra appeared at UC Riverside during Health Matters: A Conversation with Our Next Governor, a nonpartisan forum that drew more than 300 Inland Empire residents and focused on health care, taxes, the economy, homelessness and federal-state relations.

At that forum, Becerra framed the Inland Empire’s struggles around a broader failure to reward work, saying his father was a construction worker and his mother was a clerical worker who were able to buy a home, send four children to college and retire with dignity in California.

“Today, young families can’t do that,” Becerra said at the November forum. “If I’m governor, they will.”

That theme carried into the May 27 interview, where Becerra thanked community media outlets for reaching families he said are often overlooked by mainstream media.

“We need to have those voices of communication, the network that gets out to our communities that often don’t have access to all sources of media,” Becerra said.

Becerra, who served as U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services from 2021 to 2025 and previously as California attorney general and a member of Congress, framed his campaign around working families and restoring a sense of possibility in the state.

“I believe California is hungry for a governor who can reignite a sense of possibility,” Becerra said. “This campaign has always been about one conviction, that working hard should be enough to help you build something that lasts.”

On housing, Becerra said his first executive action as governor would be to declare a housing emergency and move quickly to accelerate construction.

“There are currently about 40,000 housing units that are shovel ready,” Becerra said. “They’re ready to be built. They just lack the financing that’s necessary so they can start the construction.”

He said he would immediately work with the Legislature to identify resources to move those projects forward. Becerra also said he would seek to freeze utility rates and home insurance premiums during the housing emergency, saying many families cannot make sense of rising costs or sudden policy losses.

On immigration, Becerra said California must use every available legal tool to respond to renewed federal crackdowns and protect immigrant families.

“I will certainly work closely with Attorney General Rob Bonta to protect the interests of our families, immigrant families,” Becerra said. “We’ll stand up as we have in the past.”

On healthcare, Becerra rejected criticism that he had backed away from single-payer health care, calling the claim “a distortion” from opponents. He said he has consistently supported moving toward a more efficient system with fewer middlemen while expanding access through programs such as the Affordable Care Act.

“Everywhere I’ve gone, I’ve increased access to care to get us closer to universal coverage,” Becerra said.

On homelessness, Becerra said the state should hold cities and counties accountable for programs receiving state funding and scale up efforts that show measurable success. His comments echoed his November remarks at UC Riverside, where he said bureaucracy prevents local governments from combining funding streams from federal agencies to address homelessness.

“The money’s there,” Becerra said then. “It’s the system that’s broken.”

In San Bernardino County, polls are open from 7 AM to 8 PM Tuesday, June 2. It is the last day to vote in person or return a voted mail ballot by 8 PM. Voters in San Bernardino County can now vote at any polling location. Vote-by-mail ballots must be postmarked no later than June 2 and received by the Registrar of Voters within seven days after the election. Voters mailing ballots on Election Day are encouraged to get a hand-stamped postmark from a postal employee inside a United States Post Office. Completed mail ballots may also be returned to an official drop box or any polling place by 8 PM Tuesday.

This article is part of IECN’s election coverage and does not constitute an endorsement of Becerra or any candidate in the governor’s race.