Hilton and Becerra lead race for California governor

June 3, 2026

By JOSH FRIEDMAN

Republican Steve Hilton and Democrat Xavier Becerra appear likely to advance out of a crowded primary field in the race for governor of California.

Hilton, a British-American who served as an advisor to former Prime Minister David Cameron, has received 27.8% percent of the vote, as of early Wednesday morning. Xavier Becerra, who formerly served as California Attorney General and U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, has garnered 25.4 of the vote.

Billionaire Democrat Tom Steyer is currently in third place with 19.6% of the vote, followed by Chad Bianco with 11.3%. The top two candidates in the primary will advance to a November runoff.

Among votes cast in San Luis Obispo County, Republican gubernatorial candidates performed better than they did in the statewide contest. Thus far, Hilton has received 32.58% of gubernatorial votes cast in San Luis Obispo County, followed by Becerra with 20.16%, Steyer with 17.51% and Bianco with 15%.

Incumbent congressmen Salud Carbajal and Jimmy Panetta are leading their respective House races and have advanced to the November election. Carbajal, who thus far has 52.5% of the vote in the District 24 race, will face Republican Bob Smith, who has received 39.5% of the vote.

Panetta will face Republican Peter Coe Verbica in the District 19 runoff. Panetta has received 58.3% of the vote, while Verbica has garnered 22.8% in a field of seven candidates.

Democratic Assemblywoman Dawn Addis is leading her District 30 race. Addis will face Republican Shannon Kessler in the November election. Addis has received 53.1% of the vote, and Kessler has garnered 38.1%.

In Assembly District 37, which includes a small part of San Luis Obispo County, Democratic incumbent Gregg Hart and Republican challenger Sari Domingues are the only two candidates in the race. Hart received 59.8% of the vote, while Domingues tallied 40.2% thus far.

In the California Insurance Commissioner race, local Republican Stacy Korsgaden is currently narrowly missing out on advancing to the runoff. Korsgaden is in third place, trailing Democrats Jane Kim and Ben Allen. Kim has received 23.7% of the vote thus far, Allen has garnered 19.2% and Korsgaden has tallied 17.5%.