For the first time in state history, California has elected a Latino governor. In the midterm elections held on the 3rd, Democratic candidate Xavier Becerra secured 64% of the vote, defeating Republican challenger Steve Hilton (36%) to officially claim victory. With this win, the Democratic Party will maintain control of the California governor’s office for 16 consecutive years, dating back to Jerry Brown’s inauguration in 2011.
During his victory speech, Governor-elect Becerra emphasized, “I ran to create change, and diversity is not our weakness, but our greatest strength.” He added, “We will ease the burden on households struggling with a high cost of living and improve public services.”
Hilton, who had sparked a wave of momentum during the primaries, sought to reclaim the governor’s seat for the Republican Party for the first time in 15 years, but ultimately failed to overturn the deep-seated Democratic voter base in California.
In the Los Angeles mayoral race, Nithya Raman is currently holding a narrow lead over incumbent Mayor Karen Bass. As of 5 PM on the 4th with 67% of precincts reporting, Raman led with 51.7% compared to Mayor Bass’s 48.3%, a 3.4 percentage-point margin.
In California Assembly District 54, which includes Koreatown, pro-Korean Democratic incumbent Mark Gonzalez secured a landslide victory with 81.5% of the vote. In State Senate District 26, Sarah Hernandez is poised for victory after capturing 57%.
Meanwhile, in the race for U.S. House District 34, incumbent Jimmy Gomez (41.3%), embroiled in sexual misconduct allegations, suffered a defeat after trailing Angela Gonzalez-Torres, who captured 58.7% of the vote.
Additionally, in the California Attorney General race, incumbent Democrat Rob Bonta secured reelection with 63.8% of the vote.
