California governor candidate Katie Porter says she could have ‘handled things better’ in reaction to viral videos

Emily R. Condon

(CNN) — California governor candidate Katie Porter responded to two viral videos of her abruptly ending an interview with a journalist and another of her cursing at a staffer, saying that she takes responsibility and has apologized to the staffer.

“When I look at those videos, I want people to know that I understand that I could have handled things better,” Porter said in an interview with KTLA’s “Inside California Politics,” posted on Tuesday night.

“I think I’m known as someone who’s able to handle tough questions, who’s willing to answer questions, and I want people to know that I really value the incredible work that my staff can do,” she said. “I think … people who know me know I can be tough, but I need to do a better job expressing appreciation for the amazing work that my team does.”

Porter, who served as a Democratic congresswoman from California from 2019 to 2025 and is currently the frontrunner in the state’s Democratic gubernatorial primary, avoided repeated questions as to whether another video of her could surface.

Porter previously ran in California’s Democratic primary to fill the US Senate seat of the late-Sen. Dianne Feinstein. She ultimately lost in the primary with the seat eventually being won by current Sen. Adam Schiff.

The recent videos are not the first time Porter has made headlines. During her tenure as a representative, videos circulated of her using a whiteboard in congressional committee hearings to explain her points to opponents.

While she held herself accountable for the recently surfaced clips, Porter said that groups who support her do so because they’re looking for a tough candidate who will fight for the state.

“I could have done better, but I’m in this race to make sure that we have a governor who’s not going to sit back, who’s not going to sit quietly, because we are in a moment where we have to tackle our affordability crisis, and we have to withstand the harms that Trump is throwing at California,” Porter said.

The interview with CBS News Sacramento, released earlier this month, showed Porter seemingly frustrated by multiple follow-up questions and requesting to end the interview. Porter said she wanted a “pleasant, positive conversation” with the reporter. A portion of the interview was posted online and widely shared, even as the former congresswoman’s campaign noted she ultimately spoke to the reporter for another 20 minutes.

Politico also last week resurfaced archival footage from 2021 of the then-House member in a meeting with the Biden administration. A staffer cut into the background of the video, correcting Porter on a statement to which she responded by yelling and cursing at the staffer to leave the camera view.

In the new interview posted Tuesday, Porter took accountability for the incident, saying, “what I did to the staffer was wrong” and adding that she “will continue” to appreciate her staff.

“I expressed that I was sorry that I had lost my, you know, temper, that I’d been frustrated in the moment, and I went and told her I was grateful that she had taken the time to correct me,” Porter said.

Porter, a former law student of Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, said that she had not heard from Warren in response to these viral moments, but that other Democrats had reached out. She did not specify who or what the messages said.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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