Riverside Sheriff Chad Bianco is refusing to drop out of the California governor’s race — despite Republican pleas to sacrifice his campaign to help conservative frontrunner Steve Hilton.

Hilton demanded that Bianco, who’s trailing in polls, end his bid to ensure at least one Republican makes it to the general election. But the right-wing sheriff was defiant, claiming Hilton would certainly lose to a Dem in November.

Bianco alleged that Gov. Gavin Newsom is boosting Hilton’s campaign because Dems would rather face off against the former Fox News host.

“Gavin Newsom and the left are literally funding mailers to ensure that Steve Hilton is their competition,” Bianco wrote on X Tuesday.

Hilton pleaded with Bianco to end his campaign in a California Post opinion piece, writing: “Chad, let’s do this for the sake of the state we both love.”

“The numbers don’t lie: You can’t win, but your continued presence in the race means that California could lose — big time. The power to avoid that is in your hands,” Hilton wrote.

A poll published Tuesday by the California Democratic Party shows Hilton and Democrat Xavier Becerra leading the field, with Hilton getting 22% voter support compared to Becerra’s 21%. Bianco had just 10% support with just two weeks remaining before the June 2 primary.

The top two vote-getters will advance to the November general election.

Hilton cited Newsom’s recent reference to a “break the glass” strategy to stop two Republicans from advancing to the general election.

The governor didn’t elaborate much on the specifics, but alluded to “action efforts” behind the scenes, saying he is “making my case” to “encourage that doesn’t happen.”