Xavier Becerra and Steve Hilton, the candidates running to be California’s next governor, clashed Wednesday over taxes, immigration and regulating artificial intelligence in a testy debate held days before voters begin receiving their ballots in the heavily Democratic state.

Hilton, the former Fox News host endorsed by Donald Trump, used the hourlong matchup, hosted by CNN, to argue that Becerra, a former congressman who served as health and human services secretary during the Biden administration, was not actively campaigning and instead taking voters for granted.

“He wasn’t even supposed to be the candidate,” Hilton, 57, said, referring to Becerra’s unexpected success after an unusually wild primary campaign. “I just want to ask every Californian: Aren’t you tired of that?”

Becerra, 68, pitched his experience as an asset, vowing to tackle the state’s punishing cost of living crisis while being a bulwark against the Trump administration’s policies. He accused Hilton of owing loyalty to Trump – and not the state that roundly rejected the president in each of the last three presidential elections.

“If you listen closely, you can hear Donald Trump in that response,” Becerra said of Hilton’s reply to a question about regulating the development of AI.

Hilton’s bid to succeed California’s term-limited governor, Gavin Newsom, is aimed at voter discontent with the political status quo in a state that hasn’t elected a Republican governor in two decades. But his pitch is complicated by his party identification and the president who has backed him.

Though most Californians say the state is headed in the wrong direction, fewer than a quarter of likely voters approve of the president’s job performance, notably lower than the national average, and many cite “fight against Trump administration policies” as a priority.

Recent polls show Becerra with a significant lead over Hilton.

The debate, possibly the only face-off before the 3 November general election, comes just days before voters begin receiving their ballots by mail.

Both candidates said they would oppose the so-called billionaire tax proposal, a November ballot measure that would levy a one-time 5% tax on any California resident worth more than $1bn. Becerra’s opposition puts him at odds with progressives, including senator Bernie Sanders, who will campaign for the measure in California this weekend.

But they were at odds on Proposition 39, a ballot measure that would require voters to show a government-issued ID to vote in person. Like other Democratic leaders in the state, Becerra said he opposed the measure, calling it an initiative “backed by Donald Trump” that would make it harder for Californians to vote.

Hilton said he supported the proposal, but insisted he had confidence in the state’s voting system despite Trump’s unsubstantiated claims of fraud.

“I’ve got confidence in what we saw in the primary and in this process,” Hilton said.

Without distancing himself significantly from Trump, whose Maga base he cannot afford to alienate, Hilton sought to draw subtle differences: “My whole aim here would be to lower the temperature.”

An exchange over immigration policy became personal, when Becerra, the son of Mexican immigrants, accused Hilton, who grew up in England and was an adviser to the former UK prime minister David Cameron, of appearing to support measures that would “welcome immigrants who look like you” while wanting to “deport immigrants who look like me”.

“What a disgraceful remark that was,” Hilton shot back.

Becerra’s path to the general election was winding. After languishing in the low single-digits for much of the race, he was catapulted to the front of the pack after the implosion of Eric Swalwell’s campaign amid a slew of sexual misconduct and assault allegations – claims the now-former congressman denied. Becerra ultimately advanced first in the June primary, overcoming fierce opposition from his more progressive rival, the billionaire activist Tom Steyer.

Hilton came in second, with Trump’s endorsement helping to consolidate conservative support and avert the risk of a Democratic lockout in the state’s nonpartisan primary. But the president’s support risks being a liability in the general election as the unresolved war with Iran has spiked oil prices and kept US inflation stubbornly high.

Since reaching the general election, Becerra has maintained a low profile, while Hilton has blitzed the state as he seeks to make inroads with voters who disapprove of Trump.

“Thank you to CNN for bringing Xavier out of hiding,” Hilton said, slamming his opponent as a “career politician” who was the product of the “machine in Sacramento”.

Becerra pushed back, arguing that the challenges facing the state and country were too great to risk rolling the dice on a political newcomer.

“There aren’t training wheels in the governor’s office,” Becerra said, repeating a line he deployed in the primary. “You have to know how to do the job, and that’s why I’m asking California voters to vote for me for governor of state of California.”