Xavier Becerra is the first Sacramento-born governor since 1917

Sacramento is about to have a son come home. Not just any son, but one who will hold the state’s highest office. As polls closed, The Associated Press declared Xavier Becerra the winner of California’s gubernatorial race, making him the first governor born and raised in Sacramento since Hiram Johnson, who served from 1911 to 1917. It’s a milestone so rare it feels like a historical echo. The Abridged reported that Becerra’s connection to Sacramento is a through line that has run from his childhood home in Land Park to the halls of power and back again.

For a state so often defined by its coastlines and celebrity, this is a story rooted in the soil of the Central Valley. Becerra’s father was a farmworker who also built roads in Sacramento; his mother was a secretary. His political journey began right here, at McClatchy High School, where he was on the golf team and part of MAYA, the Mexican American Youth Association. When the election results were called, the school posted his 1976 senior yearbook photo on Instagram. “Once a Lion, always a Lion — congratulations, Governor Becerra!” they wrote. It’s a small detail, but it humanizes the scale of this moment. A kid from Land Park, the son of a road builder and a secretary, is now poised to lead the Golden State.

The last time this happened was during World War I. Hiram Johnson, another Sacramento native, led the state from 1911 to 1917. Think about that.

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Which brings us to the California Governor’s Mansion at 1526 H St. A three-story Victorian and State Historic Park, it’s a beautiful, tangible piece of California history, a nearly 150-year-old home that has been unoccupied since Jerry Brown moved out in 2019. Newsom famously proclaimed he, his wife, and their four children would live there, but later settled on a home in Carmichael. The mansion has stood empty, a silent witness to political change, awaiting its next resident.

A Home for a Governor?

Now, the question is whether Becerra will claim it. His primary residence is already in Sacramento. On Election Day, he cast his ballot at a voting center near his childhood neighborhood, visiting the Belle Cooledge Community Center in South Land Park. But the decision on the mansion is still up in the air. Campaign spokesperson Jonathan Underland told The Abridged, “Becerra is still determining where he will live as governor.” That uncertainty is the first major decision of his incoming administration, and it’s a question with more layers than it seems on the surface.

Xavier Becerra wins governor race, first Latino elected to position in California

Why does an empty house matter? Because it’s a symbol. The Governor’s Mansion has been unoccupied since early into Gavin Newsom’s first term. For a governor-elect with deep Sacramento roots, the choice is steeped in meaning. Will he live as a neighbor in his community, or will he occupy the historic seat of power, a physical reminder of his unique place in the state’s story?

There are practical considerations, of course.

Xavier Becerra is the first Sacramento-born governor since 1917

The governor’s home doesn’t fix potholes or manage a wildfire. But leadership is also about symbolism. It’s about the story you tell the state and the world. For a governor whose own story is so intrinsically tied to Sacramento, the mansion is the final chapter of that origin story.

The mansion is a living piece of California’s history. For a governor with Sacramento roots, the decision to live there would be a powerful statement of connection to the state’s past and its people.

Xavier Becerra's first words after winning the governor's race

The stakes here are both personal and public. For Becerra, it’s a choice between a familiar, personal life in the neighborhood he knows and the formal, historic role of the First Family. Not since Hiram Johnson has that been a possibility. It’s a quiet, yet profound, question hanging over the start of a new era in Sacramento.

What comes next is Becerra’s decision. It’s a decision that will be made in the coming weeks, away from the public eye, but its impact will be felt as soon as it’s announced. Will the historic Governor’s Mansion finally have residents again, or will it remain a beautiful, empty house, waiting for the next chapter to be written? For a governor who has spent his life moving between Sacramento and Washington, that choice might be the most important one he makes.