“Cheers” star and Pixar voice actor John Ratzenberger announced his support for Republican California gubernatorial candidate Chad Bianco, calling out Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom’s leadership.
With California’s June primary approaching, the race between Democrats and Republicans is heating up. Endorsements have continued to roll in as party leaders and public figures weigh in on who they believe can steer the state forward; Ratzenberger is the latest to do so. The actor has worked in Hollywood for over 20 years, featuring as Cliff Clavin in “Cheers” and voicing notable characters in Pixar films such as “Toy Story,” “Cars” and “Monsters, Inc.”
In an exclusive statement to the Daily Caller News Foundation, Ratzenberger reflected on Newsom’s leadership during the 2020 COVID-19 lockdowns, saying the only person he trusts to “fix the mess” Newsom is leaving behind is Bianco.
“I’ve spent years traveling the country trying to bring back America’s manufacturing. I’ve talked with manufacturers across this country who, prior to President Trump, were completely overlooked. In California, Gavin Newsom spent his time partying with celebrities while businesses were forced closed. There is only one man I trust to fix the mess Gavin Newsom is leaving behind, and that’s Sheriff Chad Bianco,” Ratzenberger told the DCNF.
“When Newsom shut down California, Sheriff Bianco refused to arrest people for keeping their businesses open. He gets it,” Ratzenberger added. “It’s going to take his background and experience to finally put an end to the crime and corruption that has plagued California for years.”
During the nationwide two-week shutdown, California imposed some of the longest-lasting COVID-19 restrictions in the country under its “Blueprint for a Safer Economy” tier system. While most states, including Democrat-led states, implemented mandatory stay-at-home orders in April 2020 and lifted them by May 2020, California did not fully lift its tier system until June 2021, according to World Population Review.
As small businesses and workers struggled financially, California experienced a mass exodus between April 2020 and July 2022, losing roughly 500,000 residents, according to U.S. Census Bureau data released in 2024. Although the state later regained about 67,000 residents, the California Department of Finance warned in 2024 that it is “likely to experience slower but positive growth for the near future.”
Beyond population losses, Newsom and state leaders also faced criticism over California’s unpaid pandemic unemployment debt to the federal government, as the state remains the only one that has not repaid it. In 2021, the Employment Development Department faced scrutiny over its estimates of fraudulent Pandemic Unemployment Assistance payouts.
Ratzenberger also voiced his support for President Donald Trump in 2024, telling Fox News Digital that he and Trump both value bringing work back to America, specifically highlighting the shortage of workers with manufacturing skills.
With roughly eight prominent Democrats and two Republicans, including Bianco, running in California’s 2026 gubernatorial race, polls suggest Democrats could face a competitive primary. An Emerson College Polling and Inside California Politics survey released in December showed Bianco leading with 13% support, followed by Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell at 12%, former Fox News host Steve Hilton also at 12%, and former Democratic Rep. Katie Porter at 11%.
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