California Republicans refused to endorse Donald Trump's pick for governor, despite his backing of former Fox News host Steve Hilton. This is a significant rebuke of the sitting president by the party's rank-and-file in the nation's most populous state. The break comes amid increasing fears within the GOP about their prospects in the midterms, including in critical House battlegrounds in California. More party delegates voted for Chad Bianco, a firebrand Southern California sheriff, over Hilton, with neither reaching the 60 percent threshold necessary to secure an endorsement. Despite this, some believe that the absence of Trump on the midterm ballot could lead to their defeat.