California’s governor’s race is tightening as many Democratic voters appear to be waiting until the final hours to cast their ballots.<\/p>\n
Ballot-tracking data shows Democrats are voting at a slower pace heading into Election Day, fueling expectations of a late “blue surge” that could shift the final outcome once all ballots are counted.<\/p>\n
Democratic strategist Steve Maviglio says the trend reflects voters who are still weighing their choices.<\/p>\n
“To me, it’s voters hanging onto their ballots until the bitter end,” Maviglio said.<\/p>\n
Data from Political Data, Inc. show a slow increase in ballots cast on Monday, with registered Democratic ballots cast still trailing registered Republicans 18% to 21%, respectively. <\/p>\n
The latest Emerson College poll shows Democratic candidate Xavier Becerra leading the field with 28% support, followed by fellow Democrat Tom Steyer at 22%. Republican Steve Hilton sits at 21%, while Republican Chad Bianco has 12% support.<\/p>\n
With the race still tight, Hilton is now making a last-minute call for Bianco to drop out of the race in an effort to consolidate Republican support and improve the party’s chances of advancing to the November general election.<\/p>\n
“For Republicans who have not voted yet, and still intend to, they really should be focusing on making sure they have a candidate in the runoff,” Republican strategist Rob Stutzman said.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Democratic campaigns have also ramped up attacks in the final stretch of the primary.<\/p>\n
Steyer recently launched an attack ad targeting Becerra, linking him to a corruption case involving his former chief of staff.<\/p>\n
Becerra’s campaign fired back with a cease-and-desist letter to take the ads down, calling them “false and defamatory.”<\/p>\n
With thousands of ballots still outstanding, strategists say the governor’s race remains too close to call and could take days or even weeks to fully resolve.<\/p>\n