Hilton, Becerra lead in California gubernatorial primary
Vote counting continued after the California gubernatorial primary, with just over half of the votes cast.
California’s crowded 2026 gubernatorial race captivated the nation, but the state’s jungle primary system left many wondering which candidates would appear on the November ballot, and many still have questions the morning after the primary.
As of the morning of June 3, the California gubernatorial race was still too close to call, even though Democratic candidate and climate change activist Tom Steyer continued to fall behind the two leading candidates, Republican Steve Hilton, a Fox News contributor and small business owner, and Democrat Xavier Becerra, a former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services.
While the California Secretary of State’s office continues to receive and count late-arriving mail and submitted ballots, major news organizations are opting to suspend campaigning because these late votes could significantly swing the race in the days after primary night.
Unlike other states, California holds open primaries, with the top two candidates advancing to the general election ballot in November.
Going into California’s primary night, people wondered if the Republican candidate could be barred from this November’s election, but as the night wore on, that possibility seemed less likely as Mr. Steyer fell further behind the two leading candidates.
The California Secretary of State’s Office reported as of Wednesday morning that Mr. Hilton had received more than 1.38 million votes, Mr. Becerra had received more than 1.26 million votes, and Mr. Steyer had received more than 979,000 votes.
Either way, both the Hilton and Becerra camps took victory laps late on the first night.
Remarkably, Hilton’s success highlights the aspirations of Californians Calling for change as state faces housing and affordability crisis It became the focus of this year’s gubernatorial election.
“Looks like real change is coming to California,” Hilton said in a June 3 social media post. “If someone is going to take this state back, that’s the plan. Change is coming. We’re heading to Sacramento.”
In a late-night preliminary speech, Hilton emphasized that his campaign started as a “handful of rebels” who believed California had “gone off the rails” and that his leadership would “get it back on track.”
“You see the struggle in your eyes. The struggle of small business owners. The struggle of working class Californians,” Hilton said in his speech. “Young people who don’t see a future in California and think they have to move elsewhere to pursue their dreams of owning a home.”
Meanwhile, Becerra, who had been leading in the polls until the night of the primary, ultimately fell short of expectations, receiving the second-most votes out of more than 60 candidates.
Regardless of his performance, Mr. Becerra remained unfazed by it, celebrating his possible victory in a late speech intended to energize voters on opening night.
“The California dream is alive tonight,” Becerra said in his speech. “Tonight, the people of our great state of California, the greatest country on earth, spoke loud and proud.”
“And while I’m not taking anything for granted, there are still plenty of ballots left to be counted, but it looks like we’re on track for November,” he added.
However, Mr. Steyer did not stop campaigning and announced that he had chosen to wait until the Secretary of State had finished receiving the ballots.
“We’re going to wait until all the votes are counted,” Steyer said at a campaign party in San Francisco. “We’re going to give democracy time to work.”
Things didn’t go well for Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, the other major Republican candidate, who was seen as a strong candidate for governor in early polling results. As of Wednesday morning, Bianco’s campaign had fallen significantly behind with 566,679 votes. Like Mr. Steyer, Mr. Bianco’s campaign did not budge, choosing to wait for more votes to be counted.
On the night of the primary, Democratic candidates San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, former U.S. Representative Katie Porter, and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced they were withdrawing from the race. All three candidates received less than 5% of the state’s vote in unofficial voting.
“While the gubernatorial campaign ends tonight, our mission has just begun,” Mahan’s campaign told X. “We’ve proven that a better California is possible because we’re doing it right here in San Jose.”
Noe Padilla is a Northern California reporter for USA Today. To contact him, npadilla@usatodayco.comX Follow him at @1NoePadilla or Bluesky @noepadilla.bsky.social.. Sign up for the TODAY Californian newsletter or follow TODAY Californian on Facebook.
