Supporters lined up for photos, volunteers shuffled through stacks of campaign flyers and television cameras waited near the stage as Steve Hilton greeted voters in Huntington Beach.
The scene reflected both the enthusiasm of his supporters and the challenge ahead. Hilton is running for governor in a state where Republicans have not won a gubernatorial election since Arnold Schwarzenegger’s 2006 reelection. Democrats have controlled statewide politics for nearly two decades.
Hilton believes growing frustrations over affordability, homelessness and public safety have created an opening…