California election results live: Key races still too close to call

What's next for California's election results?

James Ward, Noe Padilla, Ernesto Centeno Araujo, Daniella Segura and Paris Barraza

Over the next several days, counties will continue to process vote-by-mail ballots returned on or around Election Day, along with provisional ballots requiring verification. Updated vote totals are typically released once per day, though timing varies by county.

• Late-arriving ballots: California allows vote-by-mail ballots postmarked by Election Day to arrive in the days following the election, meaning additional votes — often from larger urban counties — will continue to be added to the tally.
• Final certification: Counties have up to 30 days to complete their canvass and certify results, with statewide certification occurring after all valid ballots are counted.

'This campaign has come to an end': Saikat Chakrabarti drops out of District 11 race

Noe Padilla

Saikat Chakrabarti, one of the candidates in the 11th Congressional District race in San Francisco for Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s open seat following her retirement, announced he would drop out.

This comes after California State Senator Scott Wiener and San Francisco County Supervisor Connie Chan took a significant lead in Tuesday's primary, with the Associated Press, New York Times, and NBC ultimately calling the race.

Wiener currently leads the race with over 44,000 votes (41.3%), while Chan has received over 30,000 votes (14.9%) and Chakrabarti trails with 16,000 votes (14.9%), according to the California Secretary of State's office.

"I want to congratulate Sen. Scott Wiener and Supervisor Connie Chan on their victories and thank everyone who participated in this election," Chakrabarti said in a statement. "We built the largest grassroots field campaign San Francisco has ever seen and proved that people are hungry for a different kind of politics. This campaign has come to an end, but the challenges facing San Francisco and our country remain, and so does the work of building a future where everyone has access to healthcare, affordable housing, and a government that puts people ahead of corporate interests."

Yee, Swalwell near 1% of vote despite ending California governor bids

Daniella Segura

Despite ending their campaigns weeks before Election Day, two Democratic gubernatorial candidates have together received nearly 1% of the vote, according to results released by the California Secretary of State early Wednesday, June 3.

Betty Yee, the former California State Controller, has received 25,130 votes (0.5%), while former Rep. Eric Swalwell has drawn 18,602 votes (0.4%).

With 43,742 votes so far, the pair is on pace to outpoll trailing candidates, including Democrat Tony Thurmond, who has 33,137 votes (about 0.7%). Combined, their total exceeds the individual vote shares of more than 50 other gubernatorial candidates and places them just behind Democrat Antonio Villaraigosa, who holds 1.3%.

Here's why they were on the ballot.

What could possible LA mayor race runoffs look like?

Paris Barraza

We spoke to experts about how incumbent Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass' potential runoff matchups could shape up. Will she face Spencer Pratt, an outspoken critic of hers and former reality TV star, or Nithya Raman, the progressive Los Angeles city councilmember?

While these matchups appear likely, the race has not been called.

Experts weighed in on who might have a competitive edge.

Beyond CA governor's race, who else is leading for state-wide offices?

Ernesto Centeno Araujo

While attention is being paid to the California gubernatorial race, or local elections such as mayoral, congressional or assembly races, there were some offices on the June 2 primary ballot that will affect all Californians.

Some offices, such as lieutenant governor, treasurer and insurance commissioner, are up for grabs and will see a fresh face take office after the November runoff elections. Other positions have incumbents fighting for reelection.

While votes are still being counted statewide, some candidates have taken an early lead, and as part of California's "jungle primary," this round of elections is just the beginning for the top two candidates.

How are the elections for some statewide positions playing out? Click here to find out.

Trump congratulates Steve Hilton on governor race lead

Noe Padilla

Although the California governor's race has not yet been called, that didn't stop President Donald Trump from congratulating Republican candidate Steve Hilton, who is currently the leading candidate in early returns a day after the primary election.

"Congratulations to Steve Hilton on coming in first, last night, in the California Vote for Governor. If Californians are smart, which I know they are, they will put Steve into the Governor’s Mansion, and watch their State get better at a rate that has probably never been seen before," Trump posted on Truth Social.

Notably, prior to Trump's endorsement in April, Hilton was in a tight race with fellow Republican candidate Chad Bianco, the Riverside County sheriff. Ultimately, the president's endorsement offered a kingmaker moment for many of his supporters: Hilton currently leads the race with over 1.38 million votes (27.8%), while Bianco has over 566,000 votes (11.3%), according to the California Secretary of State's office.

Hilton thanked the president for his support in a post on X.

"I am fighting for each and every Californian, to restore the California Dream," Hilton said in the post. "Change is coming."

The California gubernatorial election was still too close to call on Wednesday, June 3, with Democratic candidate and climate advocate Tom Steyer behind Hilton and fellow Democrat Xavier Becerra, the former United States Secretary of Health and Human Services.

Once a reality TV villain, Spencer Pratt adopted same role in race for Los Angeles mayor

Jay Stahl

Before last January, Spencer Pratt was best known as the early aughts agitator to the girl next door on MTV's reality television hit "The Hills."

He catapulted to superstardom after teaming up with now-wife Heidi Montag to pester Montag's ex-BFF Lauren Conrad, who first rose to fame on "Hills" predecessor "Laguna Beach." (Conrad later became an ultra-private Kohl's designer and mother of two.)

Then, a year after the Palisades wildfires ravaged Southern California, destroying his home, Pratt, 42, announced his bid for Los Angeles mayor.

Two decades after "The Hills" premiered in 2006, Pratt, by the afternoon of June 3, was ranking second behind incumbent Karen Bass in the city's jungle primary.

On the night of the primary election, holding hands with Montag, the mayoral candidate posed in glossy paparazzi-style photos. "LA is coming back," he captioned the images.

California may take weeks to finalize primary results. 'This is normal'

Daniella Segura

Although results from California’s primary election began rolling in on Tuesday, June 2, it could take days or even weeks before the final counts are certified.

"This is normal ... We have a process that by law ensures both voting rights and the integrity of elections, so I would call on all Californians to be patient," Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber said in a June 2 news release.

The Golden State’s lengthy vote-counting process has "become a national narrative about California elections," according to Thad Kousser, a professor of political science at the University of California, San Diego.

"In California, it takes a long time to certify votes, to verify the signatures, to then count the ballots; all of that process takes a while," Kousser said in an interview last week. "It may take a while for us to learn who the top candidates who emerge are."

Here are some factors behind California’s lengthy vote-counting process.

Who will Bass face in LA mayor race in November?

Paris Barraza

Who will join incumbent Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass in a runoff election in November looms on Wednesday, June 3: Will she face Spencer Pratt, an outspoken critic of hers and former reality TV star, or Nithya Raman, the progressive Los Angeles city councilmember?

Early results on Wednesday morning showed Bass leading with nearly 35% of the vote, followed by Pratt (30%) and Raman (22%), according to the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk.

Trailing behind them are Adam Miller at nearly 4% and Rae Huang at nearly 2.8%. Election officials are expected to continue counting ballots and providing updates in the days to come.

In a post on X, Bass said she’s devoted her entire life to serving the city she loves — where she was born — and that she’s going to continue to do that "all the way to victory in November."

Why California vote totals keep changing after Election Day

James Ward

California law is designed to count every valid ballot—even if that means results take days or weeks to finalize.

Counties have weeks after Election Day to process, verify and count ballots before certifying results. That’s why close races can shift long after the last voter leaves a polling place.

On election night, you’re mostly seeing the “easy” ballots:

• Vote-by-mail ballots that arrived and were verified before Election Day
• Early in-person votes
• Some Election Day ballots

Millions of others are still in the pipeline.

Those include:

• Mail ballots dropped off on Election Day
• Ballots arriving in the days after (as long as they were postmarked by Election Day)
• Provisional and same-day registration ballots that require extra checks

Central Valley battleground CA-22 heads to November without clear challenger to Valadao

James Ward

California’s 22nd Congressional District is again shaping up as one of the state’s most competitive — and most expensive — House races, with early primary results underscoring just how narrow the margins could be this fall.

Rep. David Valadao, R-California, is leading the June 2 primary with about 44.5% of the vote and will advance to November. “I am honored to have earned the vote of so many voters across the Central Valley,” he said Tuesday night, pointing to a broad coalition and adding, “I look forward to earning voters’ support again in November.”

The fight for second remains unsettled. As of 9 a.m. Wednesday, Democrat Randy Villegas holds roughly 29.8%, with fellow Democrat Jasmeet Bains at 25.7%, leaving Valadao’s November opponent still undecided as ballots continue to be counted. Together, the Democratic candidates account for nearly 56% of the vote so far, a sign of the difficult reelection path ahead for the incumbent.

That uncertainty sets up days or weeks of counting in a race that could help determine control of the House. Analysts have long rated the Central Valley seat a toss-up, and California’s top-two primary system means the final matchup is still in flux.

Spanning Fresno, Kern, Kings and Tulare counties, the district has already drawn millions in spending and heavy national attention — setting the stage for another razor-thin, high-dollar general election fight this fall.

How many votes are still left to be counted in California? It's complicated

James Ward

Over the next few days or even weeks, you’ll hear estimates about how much of the vote is still outstanding—but those numbers are rough, not exact.

County election officials track ballots still being processed as “unprocessed ballots,” meaning ballots they’ve received but haven’t fully verified or added to totals. As they work through that backlog, counties update vote counts and estimate how many ballots remain, and the state rolls those into a rough statewide snapshot.

But those estimates come with caveats. There’s no single running total—just county-by-county estimates that change over time. They include different ballot types, such as late-arriving mail ballots, provisional ballots and ballots needing signature fixes. The total can even grow after Election Day as valid ballots continue to arrive.

That’s why the often-cited “percentage of votes outstanding” isn’t precise. It’s a moving target based on votes counted so far and estimated ballots left, both of which can shift as counting continues.

So when you hear that “50% of the vote is still out,” that’s usually shorthand—not an official number. Election pundits combine current totals, ballot estimates and past turnout patterns to make an educated guess, which is why different outlets may cite different figures.

The bottom line: Slow results don’t mean something is wrong. They reflect how California runs elections—with universal mail voting, ballots accepted after Election Day if mailed on time and verification required before counting—so more votes are included in the final results.

Does Steyer still have hope to finish in the top two for CA governor's race?

Terry Collins and Phillip M. Bailey

Only the top two vote-getters in the Golden State's nonpartisan "jungle primary" advance to the general election this fall, and early on during the governor's race, Democrats were worried about being shut out.

Early polling showed Steve Hilton and fellow Republican Chad Bianco leading the pack with the state's liberal majority split among a large crop of Democratic contenders to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is term-limited. But that changed in the final stretch of the campaign with Democrat  Xavier Becerra emerging as the leader in the polls after former U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell departed from the race in April over allegations of sexual assault and misconduct, which he denies.

Becerra looks very likely to finish in the top two. And while billionaire Democrat Tom Steyer, who spent more than $200 millionfunding his campaign, may not, there's a possibility he could break through and lock out the Republicans, as some political observers suggest.

That's because many uncertain Democratic voters waited to cast their ballots until Election Day rather than mail in their vote early, which could create a so-called "red mirage" where a GOP candidate takes an early lead that subsides as later ballots arrive.

But  David McCuan, a political science professor at Sonoma State University, believes Hilton has the staying power to advance to November's election, likely leaving Steyer on the sidelines." There were seven main Democratic candidates in a very blue state with two GOP candidates still in contention," McCuan said, suggesting low-polling candidates still in the primary presence hurt Steyer's chances by splitting the vote. "It's simple math: GOP voters don't flee."

California governor race tight as Hilton, Becerra still lead early returns

James Ward and Terry Collins

California is slowly counting the votes in its closely watched June 2 gubernatorial contest, with early results showing Republican Steve Hilton and Democrat Xavier Becerra at the top of the heap.

"The first time I've run for office, over a million people and rising voted for me to take this incredible state in a new direction," Hilton told cheering supporters with a theme of "Change is coming," at his Huntington Beach campaign party.

As of Wednesday morning, with roughly 55% to 60% of expected votes counted, Hilton led with about 27.8% of the vote, followed by Becerra at roughly 25.4%, according to multiple live tallies. Democrat Tom Steyer trailed in third at about 19.6%.

Those margins remained tight as counting continued, with millions of ballots — many cast by mail — still left to process.

"The California Dream is alive tonight," Becerra told supporters.

Under California’s top-two primary system, the two highest vote-getters will advance to the November general election regardless of party, positioning Hilton and Becerra as the likely contenders if current results hold.

Steyer waiting until 'every ballot is counted'

Terry Collins

Seemingly stuck in third place in the race for California governor, Democratic candidate Tom Steyer told supporters he isn't giving up.

"We’re going to wait until every ballot is counted," Steyer said during his campaign party in San Francisco late Tuesday. "We’re going to give democracy time to work."

The progressive billionaire entrepreneur and climate activist trailed Republican Steve Hilton and Democrat Xavier Becerra for the top two spots, according to the Associated Press and Decision Desk HQ.

Steyer told supporters it’s unacceptable that despite California having the world's fourth-largest economy, many Californians are struggling to make ends meet. He said the rich and corporations in the state still aren't paying their fair share in taxes, and faith in government’s ability to do anything is lower than ever. 

"Californians are being priced out of their homes every single day," Steyer said. "And we see corporations continue to rig the system for themselves – raising your prices to juice their profits. Screw that," Steyer continued. "California deserves better. Working people deserve better."

Democrat Katie Porter drops out of governor race

Noe Padilla

Former Rep. Katie Porter announced that she would be dropping out of the California gubernatorial race as early results showed she trailed behind the leading candidates.

"We know tonight that we will not advance to the general election in November," Porter said in a video announcing her concession. "But as I look back on this race, I am so incredibly proud of the campaign we built together."

Porter was one of the leading names on the California primary election ballot that featured over 60 gubernatorial candidates, capturing attention with her plans to address the affordability and housing crisis many families face. She noted that housing was one of the top issues in her campaign "because its the top expense for most California families."

In her concession speech, Porter thanked Californians who supported her campaign and her fellow candidates.

"Running a race like this isn't easy," Porter said. "And coming up short is hard. But democracy is worth doing something hard things for."

As of 10:45 p.m. PT on Tuesday, June 2, with about 75.6% of the statewide vote counted, the California secretary of state's office reported that Porter had received about 214,103 votes, or about 5%.