On January 6, 2026, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco came to Skid Row for a
photo opportunity in his campaign for Governor of California. Bianco is a MAGA-aligned
Republican. He has been the elected Sheriff of Riverside County since 2019. Bianco is
a vocal advocate for using criminal penalties to address societal problems like mass
scale houselessness.
Announcing his candidacy for governor, Bianco said he wanted the streets “cleaned up”
and the “tent encampments gone.” His campaign website explains that he will use the
Grants Pass decision to “clear encampments.” In Grants Pass, the US Supreme Court
said cities, counties, and states could punish people for simply existing in public space,
even if they have nowhere else to go. Following that decision, other states have passed
blanket bans on people living in public spaces. If elected, he likely would seek to do the
same.
Bianco believes that houselessness in California is not caused by the shortage of
affordable housing for poor people and the stagnation of workers’ wages compared to
housing costs. In fact, he says that unhoused people don’t want homes or housing. He
says that houselessness is caused by the “homeless industrial complex,” and lenient
approaches to drug use. To him, unhoused people are “drug induced psychotics,” who
need to be to be forced into rehab to change their “lifestyles.” His plan is to use the
criminal law to do so.
Bianco boasts of leading efforts to pass Proposition 36, which increased criminal
penalties for petty thefts and drug use, while setting up a system of forced drug
treatment. He has criticized recent reforms in California that have reduced prison
populations. He promises, if elected, to empower the police and to impose more
punishment—as opposed to supporting communities with resources needed to create
real safety.
The California Department of Justice is conducting a civil rights investigation into
Bianco’s Sheriff’s Department, alleging a “pattern and practice” of unconstitutional
policing, including systemic use of excessive force, and citing to the extremely high
numbers of people dying in the county jails he runs. His jail are considered among the
most lethal in the US. Last year, Riverside County paid a $7.5 million settlement to the
family of a man they killed during a jail cell extraction. The man was in custody for being
intoxicated. Bianco denies wrongdoing by his deputies and says the DOJ investigation
is politically motivated.
Bianco has been a member of the Oathkeepers, a far right, militia-type organization that
includes many members of law enforcement and the military. The Oathkeepers espouse
white supremacist ideology and many were involved in efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election. Bianco claims to no longer belong to the group, but defended them
as supporters of the US Constitution.
On Skid Row last month, Bianco handed out money and cigarettes to get people to talk
to him for the cameras. Had he actually listened to people living here, instead of touting
his ignorant agenda, he would have learned that criminalization has been the City of
Los Angeles’ policy for decades. He would have learned that it has not helped anyone
and has caused great suffering. He would have learned that people most definitely do
want homes—not shelter beds or temporary hotel rooms. He would have learned how
much the shortage of affordable housing, lack of good paying jobs, unavailability of
community-based healthcare, and racial discrimination have caused the crisis on our
streets.
Sadly, Bianco wasn’t here to listen. He was here to make a show for conservative voters
in the state who might believe his lies. Sadly, his proven cruel and ineffective “solutions,”
criminalization of unhoused people, harsher punishment, and forced mental health
treatment, are not unique to his Republican brand. Governor Gavin Newsom and Mayor
Karen Bass have promoted or implemented sweeps and forced treatment. Democrat
candidate, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, has a platform that uses softer rhetoric, but is
difficult to distinguish from Bianco’s.
As the race for California’s governor continues, it is unfortunate that candidates like
Chad Bianco are using the people of Skid Row as props for their cruel and ignorant
campaign statements while refusing to acknowledge their human rights to housing, real
healthcare, a decent standard of living, and dignified treatment.