Polling data suggests that former Rep. Katie Porter is the leading contender among Democrat California gubernatorial candidates to replace current Gov. Gavin Newsom next year.

That fact may change after Porter melted down on camera in response to a question about Trump supporters. 

Porter sparks controversy, outrage

According to Just the News, Porter's outburst came during an interview with CBS News correspondent Julie Watts which aired on Tuesday.

At one point in their exchange, Watts asked, "What do you say to the 40 percent of California voters, who you’ll need in order to win, who voted for Trump?"

Since this 3min excerpt of 30min segment went viral, we decided to post it ourselves. But I’d encourage you to watch the full segment. https://t.co/wHQcHbybqF @CBSNews @kcalnews @CBSSacramento @KPIXtv pic.twitter.com/A80fBGiFxE

— Julie Watts (@juliewattsTV) October 8, 2025

"How would I need them in order to win, ma’am?" Porter replied with a confused look. Watts responded by pointing out how without Trump supporters, Porter will need "everybody who did not vote for Trump."

Interview goes south

"In a general election? Yes," the former congresswoman insisted. "If it is me versus a Republican, I think that I will win the people who did not vote for Trump."

Watts then pressed on by asking, "What if it's you versus another Democrat?" Porter shot back by asserting, "I don't intend that to be the case."

Porter appeared to be growing increasingly irritated with Watt's line of questioning and finally denounced the interview as "unnecessarily argumentative."

"I don’t want to keep doing this," the Democrat gubernatorial hopeful declared while peering off camera. "I’m gonna call it. Thank you."

"I don't want this all on camera"

When Watts inquired as to whether Porter would continue with the interview, the former lawmaker was unequivocal, saying, "Nope, not like this I’m not."

"Not with seven follow-ups to every question you ask," Porter continued while making clear that she did not care whether Watts had asked the same question to other candidates.

"I don’t want to have an unhappy experience with you, and I don’t want this all on camera," Porter told Watts before storming off.

Although Porter appears to still have a strong base among Democrats, there are signs that she may be struggling among the broader electorate.

A Zogby Strategies poll carried out between Sept. 7 and Sept. 9 showed Porter trailing conservative commentator Steve Hilton by six points in a hypothetical general election match-up.