Tipsheet

CalDOGE Bombshell: Taxpayer-Funded Group Uses Illegal Aliens to Campaign For This Top Democrat

Dmitri Bolt
Dmitri Bolt  |  May 07, 2026 11:30 AM

The Republican frontrunner in California’s gubernatorial race, Steve Hilton, revealed Wednesday that his anti-fraud organization, CalDOGE, has reportedly uncovered a taxpayer-funded political organization in California, the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA), endorsing and campaigning for Democratic candidate Xavier Becerra, the former state attorney general and former Health and Human Services secretary under President Joe Biden.

The discovery goes even further, as the organization has openly acknowledged that it uses illegal aliens in its political outreach and campaign efforts.

"So this is our latest investigation from CalDOGE, and it's the latest corruption scandal involving Xavier Becerra and it's all connected to this organization, CHIRLA," Hilton said in a statement. "We are standing outside the CHIRLA offices in Santa Ana in Orange County. This organization is almost entirely funded by you, the California taxpayer."

"Nearly all of the money to fund CHIRLA comes from taxpayers, and we will lay out the details of that in a moment. CHIRLA has endorsed Xavier Becerra for governor of California. They did that in April," he said. "In their statement of endorsement, CHIRLA, a taxpayer-funded organization, said that it will be working to do everything it can to elect Xavier Becerra governor. In other reports that we have found at CalDOGE, we have looked in detail at how CHIRLA conducts these political activities. Listed on their document is the statement that CHIRLA uses illegal immigrants to carry out political activity."

"In other words, to be very clear, California taxpayers are funding an organization that uses illegal immigrants to campaign for Xavier Becerra," Hilton continued. "This is not just unacceptable and unethical and outrageous, a theft of taxpayer money for political purposes. It is illegal, as my colleagues here will lay out in a moment. We must be clear. Xavier Becerra cannot continue to accept support from a taxpayer-funded organization employing illegal immigrants to campaign for him. He must stop this now."

Becerra has recently emerged as the Democrats' dark horse candidate following the departure of Eric Swalwell from the race, who dropped out amid a series of sexual assault allegations. The Democrat frontrunner has continued to draw the bulk of his support from Gavin Newsom's base, and is now tied with Hilton in recent polling.

Throughout his campaign, however, Hilton has made tackling fraud in the Golden State a central issue. Alongside several other Republican candidates, Hilton and his team say they have uncovered nearly half a trillion dollars in waste, fraud, and abuse, allegations state officials have yet to confirm, deny, or even acknowledge.