Steve Hilton, the Republican candidate for California governor, is receiving heavy criticism from members of his own party over a controversial, sexual innuendo-filled campaign ad that has been described as “creepy”.

The video entitled “Just Try It, California” was released last week and depicts two young women with brightly colored hair, sitting on a bed in front of a pride flag in low lighting. One nervously says “I can’t believe I’m doing this”, while another strokes her hair and coaxes “don’t be nervous, it’s not that bad” before guiding her to fill out a ballot for Hilton and aggressively commanding “lick it”.

The controversy comes as Hilton, a British former political adviser to David Cameron and Fox News host, is fighting to advance his longshot bid against Xavier Becerra, the former health secretary. With just a few weeks to go before the November midterms elections, Hilton is trailing in the polls.

Sonja Shaw, the Republican nominee for California superintendent of public instruction, called the new campaign ad “creepy, weird, disturbing garbage”.

“This is a clear example of exactly why good people are walking away from the Republican party. As a mother and someone who has fought to protect the innocence of children, this crosses a line. We have lost our way,” she wrote on social media.

Michael Gates, the party’s nominee for state attorney general, also condemned the advertisement, stating that he “emphatically [denounced] the use of young women as a political tool”.

Hilton faces tough odds in the deep blue state, where voters haven’t elected a Republican to lead since 2004. Polls have consistently shown Becerra with a significant lead over Hilton.

Hilton is trying to rally California’s Republicans while converting Democrats and independents frustrated with the ever-increasing cost of living in California.

In a video posted shortly after the ad was launched, Hilton said it had largely been positively received but that he recognized that people were offended, and that was not his campaign’s intention.

“We were trying to make a point in a provocative way, in satirical way,” he said. “It grieves me that you’ve been upset by this. But I also want to ask you to understand what we are doing, why we’re doing it and to ask for some grace as well as understanding as we fight this campaign.”

Becerra was quick to jump on the controversy, posting an article about his own support for Medicare for All with a line directed at his rival: “Steve, just try it!”