In the race for California governor, partial results, released by the California secretary of state’s office shortly before midnight, showed Republican Steve Hilton narrowly edging out Democrat Xavier Becerra for first place, with Democrat Tom Steyer rounding out the top three.
California’s race for governor hasn’t been this unpredictable in a long time, and as results began trickling in on election night for Tuesday’s primary election, the three top-polling candidates in recent days continued to battle it out for one of the two coveted spots needed to advance to the November general election.
Besides Becerra, Hilton and Steyer, other leading candidates among the 61 on voters’ ballots headed into Election Day included Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, a Republican, and four Democrats: former Rep. Katie Porter of Orange County, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and California Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond.
Bianco, Porter, Mahan, Villaraigosa and Thurmond — in that order — rounded out the list of leading candidates in the partial results reported at 11:36 p.m.
But Villaraigosa, Mahan and Porter all conceded before the night was over.
• Also see: June 2 Primary Election Results
California’s “jungle primary” election system means the top two vote-getters will, regardless of party affiliation, face off in the November general election.
Final vote counts won’t be known for a while, as ballot counting is expected to continue over the next several days, if not weeks.
Steyer told supporters at his election night watch party in San Francisco that his campaign was “feeling good” about the results so far.
The billionaire, who poured over $200 million into his campaign and who branded himself as “the billionaire who wants to tax billionaires” and who campaigned on closing corporate tax loopholes, said in his speech that corporate interests came after him but he refused to back down.
“We were absolutely uncompromising in our values and our vision for California. And together, we’ve scared the hell out of the corporate interests used to getting their way,” he said, according to prepared remarks of the speech.
Meanwhile, in Riverside County, supporters of Bianco gathered at the Staybridge Suites in Eastvale, with many wearing cowboy hats while country music blared.
A white Volkswagen Tiguan parked outside the hotel, splattered with Bianco campaign stickers, had two American flags and two Blue Lives Matter flags affixed to its doors and a black banner that said “Bianco for Governor” draped across the hood.
Despite his fourth-place standing at the time, Bianco, clad in his signature cowboy hat, whimsically said even if he isn’t governor, he’ll continue to “make sure Sacramento hates me” — which got a big laugh from the crowd.
He said during an interview that low voter turnout may have thwarted his chances.
“What can we expect if the same people are voting over and over again?” he asked.
Bianco said he wasn’t conceding but acknowledged that numbers weren’t as high as he was expecting.
“I’m going to be realistic and say it’s not as close as what I hoped for the initial response, but it’s OK,” he said. “Know that we did everything that we could. In the end, no matter what, if it’s not in the cards for me to be your next governor, I’m still going to be the sheriff of the fourth largest county in the entire country, and I’m going to be fighting every single day to make sure Californians’ lives are better.”
Villaraigosa, who consistently polled in the low single digits, conceded about half an hour after voting ended Tuesday night.
In a statement, the former L.A. mayor said he ran so that young people can afford their first home in California and to provide solutions for struggling families.
“California is at an inflection point, and our representatives and my party need to start taking these challenges seriously so that we can once again make California the envy of the nation and the globe,” he said.
“I’m not stepping aside from the cause, only from the race,” he added. “To everyone who gave this campaign a piece of their hope: hold on to it. California is worth fighting for – and I’m not done fighting.”
Mahan followed with his own statement about an hour later.
“While this campaign for governor ends tonight, our mission has only begun,” he said.
“We will take tonight to celebrate all we have accomplished. But we’re back to work tomorrow,” he added. “This is not the last time I will ask Californians to come together to fight for a better state.”
Porter, in her concession statement, stressed that she was the only major candidate for governor who refused corporate donations.
• Also see: Katie Porter concedes in race for governor. Here’s what she had to say to supporters on election night
“It was a corporate-free campaign. A campaign that took not one penny from corporations. It’s the only campaign that we can say that about in this race. That’s something to be really proud of,” she said.
To say that this year’s gubernatorial race has seen its share of twists and turns would be an understatement.
More than 60 candidates’ names appeared on the ballot to replace termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom, though some had dropped out ahead of Tuesday’s election.
With no clear frontrunner, there were speculations just a few months ago that Democratic candidates would split the vote because of the large number of candidates from their party — a scenario that would allow the top two Republican candidates to land in the No. 1 and 2 spots, thus locking Democrats out of the runoff election in the fall.
Democratic leaders were so concerned that the chair of the state’s Democratic Party went so far as to urge low-polling candidates in the party to drop out to help consolidate votes for a stronger-performing Democratic candidate.
Then, President Donald Trump endorsed Hilton in early April, helping the former Fox News host to further distance himself from Bianco. That widening gap gave Democrats an opportunity to move in.
Several days later, Eric Swalwell, who was a top Democratic candidate, dropped out of the race following allegations of sexual misconduct, which he denies. He also resigned from Congress.
With Swalwell out, Becerra, who is also a former California attorney general, saw a surge in poll numbers, going from low single-digits all the way to the top of the field.
In more recent days, as the race tightened, some polls had Becerra leading, with Steyer and Hilton in a close race for second. That spurred talks that if Steyer comes out ahead of Hilton, Republicans could be locked out of the general election — a reversal of the headlines from just a few months ago.
That prompted Hilton to urge Bianco to drop out to give Hilton a better chance at placing in the top two. But Hilton’s plea went unheeded.
California is a solidly blue state, where Democrats enjoy a 20-point voter registration advantage over Republicans.
According to the latest voter registration figures from the secretary of state’s office, 45% of California’s registered voters are Democrats, while 25% are Republicans. “No party preference” voters make up another 23%.
The last time California voters elected a Republican to run the state was 20 years ago, when then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger won reelection.
California gubernatorial candidtate Steve Hilton addresses supporters during his election night watch party at The Waterfront Beach Resort on Tuesday, June 2, 2026, in Huntington Beach. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Xavier Becerra, candidate for governor, speaks to supporters on election night June 2, 2026. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Steyer speaks to supporters during his election night party at The Regency Ballroom in San Francisco, Calif., on Tuesday, June 2, 2026. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
GOP gubernatorial candidate and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco glances up as the first election returns are posted while speaking to campaign supporters in Eastvale on Tuesday night June 2, 2026. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan on Tuesday June 2, 2026, gives a concession speech in his race for California governor at an election event in San Pedro Market Square in downtown San Jose, Calif. (Photo: Sal Pizarro / Bay Area News Group)
Katie Porter, Democratic candidate for governor, speaks to the media after a get-out-the-vote rally in Orange on Saturday, May 30, 2026.(Photo by Mindy Schauer/MediaNewsGroup/Orange County Register via Getty Images)
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California gubernatorial candidtate Steve Hilton addresses supporters during his election night watch party at The Waterfront Beach Resort on Tuesday, June 2, 2026, in Huntington Beach. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
SCNG reporter Joe Nelson contributed to this report.
California gubernatorial candidtate Steve Hilton addresses supporters during his election night watch party at The Waterfront Beach Resort on Tuesday, June 2, 2026, in Huntington Beach. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
California Democratic Gubernatorial candidate Tom Steyer looks on while speaking to members of the press at the Wilshire/LaBrea Metro station on June 02, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. Democratic Gubernatorial candidate Tom Steyer rode the new D Line as California voters head to the polls on California primary day. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
People watch results at an election night event for California gubernatorial candidate Xavier Becerra, Tuesday, June 2, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
GOP gubernatorial candidate and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco glances up as the first election returns are posted while speaking to campaign supporters in Eastvale on Tuesday night June 2, 2026. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan on Tuesday June 2, 2026, gives a concession speech in his race for California governor at an election event in San Pedro Market Square in downtown San Jose, Calif. (Photo: Sal Pizarro / Bay Area News Group)
Katie Porter, Democratic candidate for governor, speaks to the media after a get-out-the-vote rally in Orange on Saturday, May 30, 2026.(Photo by Mindy Schauer/MediaNewsGroup/Orange County Register via Getty Images)
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California gubernatorial candidtate Steve Hilton addresses supporters during his election night watch party at The Waterfront Beach Resort on Tuesday, June 2, 2026, in Huntington Beach. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)