Donald
P. (Don) Wagner

A Southern California News Group voter guide published responses from both candidates highlighting disagreements on voter ID requirements and election security measures, with Wagner supporting voter ID and faster ballot counting.

Wagner responded to a Southern California News Group voter guide questionnaire, stating priorities including faster ballot counting, cleaning voter rolls of people who moved, died, or were ineligible, establishing chain of custody for harvested ballots, and preserving California's open primary system.

Voter guides published around October 4 listed endorsements for Wagner from the California Republican Party, Reform California, and the California Republican Assembly. The sources do not specify when the endorsements were made.

In a California Politics 360 interview with KCRA, Wagner explained his qualifications and priorities, including support for Proposition 39 (a voter ID ballot measure) and a proposal to make the secretary of state's office nonpartisan.

KQED published a joint discussion with Weber and Wagner about their competing visions for California elections. Wagner advocated for voter ID requirements and faster vote counting.

A California State University, Long Beach poll reported Weber leading Wagner by 14 points in the secretary of state contest. This was a primary-race poll, not a general-election poll.

A voter guide reported that Wagner's campaign had raised $649,000 as of August 2026. The source does not provide a specific reporting cutoff date, itemized contributions, spending, or cash on hand.

Wagner, a Republican and Orange County supervisor, finished among the top two candidates in the June 2026 primary for California Secretary of State. A voter guide reports the results as Weber 59% and Wagner 37%, with two Green Party candidates receiving 2% each, sending Wagner and Weber to the November 3 general election.