California’s notoriously slow vote count left several races unresolved late Tuesday night, but with nearly half of the votes counted in both the gubernatorial primary and the Los Angeles mayor’s race, both appear headed for runoffs that include Republicans.
Republican Steve Hilton led the field of more than 60 candidates with 26.9% support, narrowly ahead of Democrat Xavier Becerra, who had 25.8% of the vote. Both were solidly ahead of billionaire Democrat Tom Steyer, who was at 19.7%. The top two finishers will advance to a runoff in November’s general election.
The race to replace term-limited Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom was unusually wide open from the start. Some of California’s biggest Democratic names — including former Vice President Kamala Harris, Sen. Alex Padilla, and Attorney General Rob Bonta — all passed on the race, leaving a crowded field of many lesser-known candidates to battle for position.
Polls showed an unsettled electorate, a large number of undecided voters, and a cluster of candidates tightly packed near the top of the field. Political strategists described the race as one of the most volatile California gubernatorial primaries in recent memory.
With 47% of the vote counted in the L.A. mayoral race, incumbent Democratic Mayor Karen Bass led with 36.6% support, while Republican Spencer Pratt had received 29.5%. Far-left Councilmember Nithya Raman trailed with 20.8%.
The candidates appeared on the ballot without any party affiliation. The top two votegetters in the mayoral primary, regardless of party, secure a place in the November 3 runoff if neither receives more than 50% of the vote. If Bass fails to secure a majority, she will be the first incumbent L.A. mayor to advance to a runoff since 2005.
Bass would normally have a major advantage over other candidates — but discontent over her handling of the Palisades fire and the homelessness crisis led first to Pratt joining the race and then to him resonating with many of the same sentiments felt by other Angelenos.
