orywireNews that matters globallyReporting on public life and major developments across the U.S., the UK, and beyond.
orywireXavier Becerra has advanced in the California governor primary, while official state returns show Steve Hilton ahead of Tom Steyer for the second general-election spot. Results remain unofficial as ballot counting continues before certification.
Democrat Xavier Becerra has advanced to the November race for California governor, according to an Associated Press projection. Official California returns still list the primary results as unofficial, with Republican Steve Hilton ahead of Democrat Tom Steyer for the remaining top-two spot while ballot counting continues.
The California Secretary of State’s latest statewide governor results showed all 19,788 precincts partially reporting. The totals are not certified and may change as counties process mail, provisional and other ballots.
Becerra’s lead over Hilton in the unofficial statewide tally was 63,781 votes. Hilton’s margin over Steyer for second place was 323,549 votes.
The AP has projected Becerra will advance to the general election. That is a race call, not certification of the final vote count.
California’s official results page does not list the governor primary as certified. The state says results can change during the canvass period as counties add valid ballots.
California uses a top-two primary for voter-nominated offices. The two candidates with the most votes advance to the general election, regardless of party preference.
Hilton currently holds second in the official returns, but the state has not certified the results, and the AP had not projected Becerra’s opponent at this check. The latest unprocessed-ballot report from the California Secretary of State, dated June 5, estimated 3,055,949 ballots still needed processing statewide.
Not all of those ballots will necessarily include a vote for governor, but the figure shows why the race can continue to move.
California allows vote-by-mail ballots to be counted if they were postmarked on or before Election Day and received by June 9. Counties also process provisional ballots, conditional voter registration provisional ballots and ballots that need additional review.
That process is routine in California and can take days or weeks. It can affect both raw vote totals and percentages, especially in a race where the second general-election position is still being watched.
The California Secretary of State says the June 2 primary results will be certified on July 10.
Until certification, the safest wording is that Becerra has advanced according to AP, Hilton leads Steyer for second in unofficial statewide returns, and the final certified totals are pending.
Oklahoma voters rejected State Question 832, the ballot measure that would have raised the state minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2029. The vote means Oklahoma’s minimum wage remains unchanged unless lawmakers or voters approve a future increase.
Janeese Lewis George won the Democratic primary for D.C. mayor after Kenyan McDuffie conceded. Results remain unofficial pending D.C. Board of Elections certification.
Readers should rely on the California Secretary of State’s election results page for statewide totals and the state’s county reporting and unprocessed-ballot pages for counting status. Candidate statements, campaign posts and social media tallies should not be treated as official results.
This article should be updated when the state posts new statewide totals, when the AP or another reliable race-calling source projects the second general-election candidate, or when California certifies the primary results.
Mike Collins won Georgia’s Republican U.S. Senate runoff, and Rick Jackson won the Republican runoff for governor, according to AP race calls and unofficial state returns. The results set up November matchups against Sen. Jon Ossoff and Keisha Lance Bottoms.
