California Governor Gavin Newsom asserted on Tuesday that eight of the ten U.S. states with the highest murder rates are led by Republican governors. He made the remark while contrasting public-safety records between Democratic- and Republican-controlled jurisdictions. Conservative commentators and Republican officials quickly pushed back, arguing that the metric masks the role of large, Democrat-run cities within those states. They contend that urban homicide totals, rather than statewide policy differences, account for the rankings Newsom cited. The exchange highlights the continuing partisan battle over crime statistics ahead of the 2026 mid-term elections, with each side accusing the other of cherry-picking data to bolster its narrative on public safety.