Who’s running for California insurance commissioner in 2026?
The race for California governor is going to get most of the attention. But the campaign to become the state’s next insurance commissioner might be almost as consequential.
California was already facing turmoil in its insurance market before last year’s destructive fires in the Los Angeles area.
Rates keep rising. Coverage has been harder to find. And more and more people are turning to what is supposed to be the state’s insurance provider of last resort.
Combine that with criticism of current Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara’s tenure, and there’s one thing clear about this race. Whoever gets the job will become someone who is more closely watched.
The primary election is June 2. The two people with the most votes will advance to the November ballot.
Here are the leading candidates so far in alphabetical order:
Ben Allen (D)
The state senator from Santa Monica has focused heavily on environmental issues in the Legislature since he was elected in 2014, including chairing the Senate Environmental Quality Committee. Allen, 47, wants to speed up the time it takes to review requests by insurance companies to change their rates, expand programs that help residents make their homes more fire-resistant, and he supports efforts “to ensure fossil fuel companies bear appropriate financial responsibility for climate damages that are driving insurance costs up for everyone,” among other goals. Before coming to the state Capitol, he was on the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District board. He is a full-time legislator.
Steven Bradford (D)
Bradford, 66, went from the City Council of Gardena, in Los Angeles County, to the state Capitol. First as an assemblymember and then as a senator. He reached his term limit in 2024. He first joined the race for lieutenant governor before changing to run as insurance commissioner. His priorities include requiring insurance companies to publish how they set prices and calculate risk, working to create a checklist of “the most effective ways to reduce fire and flood risk” and establishing “a public–private partnership that shares the risk for insurance companies” in high wildfire risk areas.
Merritt Farren (R)
Farren, 65, is an attorney who was recently involved in challenging a rate increase by State Farm before joining the race. He said he and his husband lost their home in the Palisades Fire, one of the major blazes that hit the Los Angeles area last year and that his background working for Amazon and Disney also gives him experience in how to innovate and provide strong customer service. He said he wants to get rid of the California FAIR Plan, the state’s backup insurance provider funded by companies that do business in the state, because he argues it creates an incentive for insurers to not renew policies.
Jane Kim (D)
The former San Francisco supervisor, 48, later became part of the California staff of the Bernie Sanders 2020 presidential campaign and the state director of the Working Families Party, which calls itself “a multiracial party that fights for workers over bosses and people over the powerful.” Kim wants to create a public disaster insurance program and prevent companies from raising rates after someone files a home or auto claim, according to a campaign spokesperson.
Stacy Korsgaden (R)
The financial adviser based in San Luis Obispo County said she is running to “break the one–party stranglehold on our state government and fix a rigged system that’s left Californians with skyrocketing premiums and shrinking options.” Korsgaden, 62, said she will advocate for homeowner and auto insurance tax credits to help bring prices down and expand the options that residents have for coverage, among other goals.
Lalo Vargas (Peace and Freedom Party)
Vargas, 30, says he wants “to end the stranglehold that private insurance has over California, to investigate and hold corporate executives accountable for their crimes against consumers and to fight for a society that provides full and fair coverage for all.” He wants to freeze rate hikes, investigate the state’s insurance companies and create a public insurer. He said he is a high school science teacher in the Los Angeles Unified School District teacher and a former volunteer firefighter.
Patrick Wolff (D)
The former national chess champion is challenging Californians across the state to play him in the game to draw attention to his campaign. Wolff, 58, said he will pay one month of a person’s home or renters’ insurance if they defeat him. He became a licensed property and casualty insurance agent in November after years of working in and closely watching the insurance industry. He works as a financial analyst and independent investor, according to a campaign spokesperson. He said he will overhaul the department’s website, speed up the rate review process, and mandate the department create a performance report card for how companies handle claims.
This story was originally published February 1, 2026 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Who’s running for California insurance commissioner in 2026?."
