Hilton and Becerra lead California's unsettled governor's race; Steyer faces elimination
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As election officials continued tallying ballots Wednesday, Republican Steve Hilton and Democrat Xavier Becerra continued to lead in the unsettled race to replace termed-out Gov.Gavin Newsom, with billionaire Democrat Tom Steyer hoping for a surge in late-arriving votes to push him into one of the top-two spots to advance to the November general election.Hilton, a British immigrant and former Fox News commentator, told reporters outside the state Capitol in Sacramento Wednesday morning that he was “very encouraged” by the latest results, though he stopped short of declaring victory.“It does look as if change is coming to California, and that is good news for everyone, every small business, every working family, everyone who wants to see our state set back on track,” he said.Becerra and Steyer did not hold public events as of Wednesday afternoon.Election data analyst Paul Mitchell said it would be nearly mathematically impossible for Steyer to close the gap.
Politics Track real-time 2026 California primary results for governor, statewide offices, Congress and the legislature, with top two candidates advancing to November.“As we start to get more data, the runway is going to get shorter and shorter,” he said.He said Steyer, to finish in the top two in the primary, would have to get about 30% of the remaining uncounted votes while Becerra would need to be limited to 15%.The self-funded billionaire has “a very high hill to overcome, and the challenge gets steeper and steeper as we get more data from the counties,” Mitchell said.
Once mired near the bottom of a crowded pack of Democrats in opinion polls, Becerra, a former Biden administration cabinet member, rocketed ahead of his rival candidates after former Rep.Eric Swalwell dropped out of the race in April amid allegations of sexual assault and misconduct.
The scandal triggered an upswing of voter interest in Cal...