applause. “I’m running for governor of our beautiful state, which I absolutely love (because it’s) heading down the wrong track and has been for years.”

Bianco took aim at Sacramento Democrats who he said for decades have tried “the same failed ideas and the same failed policies.”

He listed the results of that failure, citing “rampant crime, higher taxes, the highest cost of living in our nation, tent encampments in every major city, more fentanyl deaths, catastrophic fires, a broken homeowners’ insurance market and people across our state are struggling to afford groceries and gas.”

Bianco, who moved to California in 1989, said the California dream he achieved isn’t possible for the younger generation because “destructive policies, political agendas, government overreach and regulation, radical activism and special interests” have turned that dream into a nightmare.

“Today, we fire up the machine that will restore the promise to all Californians that the dream is still alive.”

Bianco also took aim at the Democrats running for governor, saying “all of them want to be the first of this, the first of that, highlighting the worst aspect of this woke culture.”

“It is no longer about character, ability, leadership or what’s worse, it’s not about Californians. It is about them,” the sheriff said. “I believe California is in desperate need of an honest, ethical, moral governor with integrity whose only interest is to serve all of California.”

Bianco touted his role in advocating for Proposition 36, a successful 2024 ballot measure that tightened punishments for certain drug and theft offenses in what conservatives hailed as a rebuke of progressive criminal justice reform.

Inland Empire elected officials sharing the stage with Bianco included Rep. Ken Calvert, R-Corona; Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin; Riverside County Supervisor Karen Spiegel; and Assemblymembers Greg Wallis, R-Bermuda Dunes; Jeff Gonzalez, R-Coachella; Leticia Castillo, R-Riverside; and Bill Essayli, R-Corona.

“Common sense” and “competence” are needed in Sacramento, Calvert told supporters before Bianco spoke at Monday’s event. “That’s what President (Donald) Trump has brought to Washington and it’s what Chad Bianco will bring to Sacramento.”

Hestrin called the sheriff “a man of faith, intelligence, integrity and grit. He won’t lie to us and deceive us. … He won’t sell out or surrender when he believes he’s right.”

Hundreds of Bianco supporters traveled to downtown Riverside. They held red, white and blue “Bianco for Governor” signs as those who couldn’t fit inside watched the speech on an outdoor screen. Inside, a packed room gathered in front of a podium under a blue “Bianco Governor” banner.

“Let’s Go Bianco!” and “We want Bianco! We want Bianco!” chants started shortly before the sheriff took the podium. Backers carried Bianco-for-governor signs with slogans reading “California is Home. You Don’t Have to Move” and “Only the Sheriff Can Save Us Now.”

Holly Johnson drove from Cherry Valley.

“We need change in obviously the highest office in the state,” she said. “My son and daughter-in-law left (California). They wanted a better life in another state and it made me sad they had to move to do that.”

Outside the venue, a handful of protesters held signs, including “CA need a fair governor for all people, not Chad Bianco” and “Chad is Bad for CA.”

Pat Eickman, of Indivisible Riverside, had a sign reading: “We are all immigrants.”

Eickman said: “Chad Bianco has not shown that he respects all citizens equally.”

Noting media coverage of Riverside County jail inmate deaths, she added that he “cannot keep the jails safe. He certainly can’t protect California. He’s just incompetent.”

Before the announcement, Bianco’s team touted his work in the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department to stabilize “finances, increase staffing and rebuild partnerships with other law enforcement agencies.”

“Sheriff Bianco faces the reality of California’s failed public policies on a daily basis,” the email states. “He has been a strong voice for reforming state law to once again ensure public safety across California.”

The gubernatorial race is for an open seat. Democrat Gavin Newsom, California’s governor since 2018, can’t run for reelection because of term limits.

A number of candidates on the Democratic side have already announced for governor, including former state Senate President Toni Atkins, Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, state Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and former state Controller Betty Yee.

There’s also speculation that 2024 Democratic presidential nominee and former Vice President Kamala Harris and former Orange County Democratic Congressmember Katie Porter will run. On the GOP side, former Fox News host Steve Hilton is rumored to be eyeing a 2026 bid for governor.

The gubernatorial election’s timing works well for Bianco, whose sheriff term ends in 2028 thanks to a state law that shifted California sheriffs’ elections to presidential election years.

California’s top two primary system sends the two biggest vote-getters, regardless of party, to the November general election. Usually, a Republican and a Democrat advance.

From there, the odds heavily favor Democrats.

California, a blue state, hasn’t elected a Republican to a statewide office since Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2006 — and the 2018 and 2022 gubernatorial elections were called for Newsom minutes after polls closed.

A 30-year department veteran, Bianco, a married father and grandfather who lives in the unincorporated community of Woodcrest just outside Riverside, unseated incumbent Stan Sniff in 2018 to lead Riverside County’s largest law enforcement agency. He was reelected in 2022 with 61% of the vote.

As sheriff and county coroner, Bianco oversees a department with a roughly $1 billion budget and more than 4,000 employees. The department protects the public, runs five jails and guards courtrooms in a county of roughly 2.5 million people that rivals New Jersey in square mileage.

Bianco has a reputation as a plain-spoken voice for law and order with an active social media presence who blames liberal judges and Sacramento’s Democratic leadership for coddling criminals and endangering law-abiding citizens.

A frequent guest on Fox News and other conservative media, Bianco endeared himself to the right with his open defiance of, and unwillingness to enforce, Newsom’s COVID-19 mandates.

During the pandemic, Bianco expressed skepticism about the COVID-19 vaccine’s effectiveness and brushed off concerns about COVID-19 spreading in jails. He also didn’t require jail employees to be vaccinated, though unvaccinated staff had to be tested regularly.

Bianco has enjoyed support from the sheriff’s deputies union and is an unabashed Trump supporter. He endorsed the president’s campaign, quipping in a video: “It’s time we put a felon in the White House.”

While Bianco’s Trump support will win over GOP voters, it could be a liability if he gets to the general election. Trump has historically been an unpopular figure in California.

Bianco supports efforts to bolster border security. But on Feb. 6, Bianco posted an Instagram video in which he said his deputies “have not, are not and will not engage in any type of immigration enforcement. That is the sole responsibility of the federal government.”

While California conservatives are eager to see Bianco run, critics see an unaccountable loudmouth with a troublesome track record.

In 2014, Bianco admitted to being a dues-paying member of the Oath Keepers, a far-right militia whose leaders were convicted of charges stemming from the Jan. 6, 2021 U.S. Capitol riot. Bianco in 2021 said he only paid for a year’s membership and forgot he belonged to the group.

His tenure as sheriff faces scrutiny, especially for a series of jail inmate deaths that have led to wrongful death lawsuits. Bianco’s department is the focus of a California attorney general civil rights investigation, a probe he said is politically motivated.