Live Updates: California primary election results for key 2026 races including governor, LA mayor and more

Los Angeles mayoral candidate Nithya Raman spoke to supporters at her election watch party about an hour after polls closed.

"I'm here because I love Los Angeles with all of my heart. This is the most hopeful, the most resilient, the most complicated, the most creative, the most beautiful city in the entire world," she said. 

She commented on her unorthodox entry into the race against her longtime ally, incumbent Mayor Karen Bass, and Spencer Pratt.

"A few months ago, this campaign was a long shot. No one knew who I was; I was the last to enter this race," Raman said. "We had no institutional backing. But what we did have was a vision for Los Angeles."

She promised to continue fighting to make Los Angeles a place of opportunity and a place where working people could build a future as well as anyone else. 

"A vision where government actually functions and delivers every day on this city's beautiful, big-hearted values. Where we stand up against ICE, where we show up for our gay and trans siblings. A vision where our neighborhoods are safe, where they're full of trees, and shade, and alive with activity," she said. 

Raman then went on to note that her vision for LA "threatens some very powerful forces."

"They came at us with everything that they had. The corporate landlords, the city hall insiders, the corporations, who have spent years making sure city hall worked for them and not for the people," she said. "These powerful interests spent millions of dollars against this little campaign."

She said that her team fought back against the "MAGA machine" with "love and hope" and the support of her followers. 

"You helped us shape plans and policies for what we can actually build in LA together," she said. "Tonight may not give us a final answer on this race. Many thousands of votes will be counted on the days ahead, and we may not get an answer we like. But regardless of what happens next, nobody, nobody can take away what we built together."

As results continue to come in for the Los Angeles mayoral election, Mayor Karen Bass spoke to supporters at her Koreatown watch party around 9:15 p.m.

"I will tell you it is looking good so far," said an energetic Bass. "I am so glad to be here with everyone. On a night [that], in a couple of hours, we will declare victory." 

Just before 9 p.m., Bass was leading the race with 36.5 percent of the vote. Former reality TV star Spencer Pratt was in second with 30.1 percent of the vote and LA City Council member Nithya Raman trailed behind in third with 20.2%.

If no candidate earns more than 50% of the vote, there will be a runoff election in November with the top two candidates advancing.

With her family standing behind her, Bass thanked those in her life for standing by her during a hard-fought primary campaign.

"Let me just say, we can't do anything without our families," Bass said. "Our families who put up with all that we have to go through when we choose public life. I just want to take a minute to tell you much how much I love you so much and appreciate you for standing there with me throughout thick and thin." 

Early returns have started to come in for key races across California, including the high-profile gubernatorial and insurance commissioner races.

In the race to replace termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom, first results show that Republican Steve Hilton and Democrat Xavier Becerra are leading the pack. These early results have aligned with the latest polls conducted leading up to the primary election.
Billionaire Tom Steyer, also a Democrat, and Republican Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco are positioned behind them as the remaining candidates trail even further behind.

As candidates are vying to replace Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara, who is also termed out, early returns show Democratic challengers Jane Kim and state Sen. Ben Allen leading the race. Republican candidate Stacy Korsgaden follows closely behind.

Early results remain preliminary, and additional Election Day and vote-by-mail ballots are still being processed across the state.

Just about half an hour after polls closed in California at 8 p.m., former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa conceded the race for California governor.

Villaraigosa issued a statement at 8:29 p.m., thanking supporters and congratulating other candidates.

"Tonight didn't turn out the way we hoped, and I offer my congratulations to the winners and offer my best wishes for the road ahead," he said. "I'm not stepping aside from the cause, only from the race. 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." 

A longtime figure in California politics, Villaraigosa was one of the first major candidates to join the race.

Republican Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and gubernatorial candidate Chad Bianco spoke with supporters at his election watch party shortly after polls closed across California. 

"I cannot express enough, from the bottom of my heart, how appreciative I am for all of you," Bianco said.

He said that his goal in running for governor was to provide California's youth with the same opportunities that he had growing up. 

"It's not because of any of you, it's not because of any of your businesses. It's because of an absolutely failed political agenda in California," he said. "There is only one way to fix that, and that is to absolutely disrupt and destroy this agenda in Sacramento that is ruining our lives."

Bianco said that his decision to run was came with sacrificing time spent with family and the sheriff's department. 

"It was a sacrifice to make sure that I did everything I could to travel the state for the last 16 months to make sure that I make a better life for all of you in California," he said. "We did everything we could to make sure that we made the California Dream an attainable thing again, and we're going to keep this going."

He told the crowd that there would be 30 days of vote counting and that he and his team were in a "very, very, very good spot."

"Strategically, in our campaign, we knew that it was going to come down to voting day, because our voters are on voting day," Bianco said. "We don't believe in polls, we don't believe in mail-in ballots, and we show up to the polls and we make sure to choose who the next governor is going to be."

Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton stepped onto the stage at his Huntington Beach watch party at about 7 p.m. to reach voters just an hour before polls close in California.

"There's still an hour left, so if you want change, there's only one candidate for change that has a realistic possibility of making it into the top two," he said. "If you want change in California, there's only one vote that can make it happen."

Hilton pointed to the 16 years of Democratic Party control of the state Capitol since former Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger left office in 2011. In the last few weeks of campaigning before Tuesday's primary, Hilton has continuously called for Republican voters to unite behind him to avoid a vote-splitting situation between him and fellow GOP candidate, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco.

"We cannot let this chance for change slip away," he said. "The argument for change is irresistible … We are fighting as if we are in third place."

When speaking about the two leading Democrats contending to advance in the race, Hilton said both were more of the same. Former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, Hilton argued, has had moments in which he said he wouldn't do things much differently than current Gov. Gavin Newsom. Billionaire environmentalist Tom Steyer would push the state "even further and faster" in a direction "Californians by a majority have said they don't want to go," Hilton claimed.

"I don't think it makes any difference, to be honest, whether it's Tom Steyer or Xavier Becerra," he said.

Bay Area voters are casting their ballots in Tuesday's primary election to help determine several races that could draw national attention, including contests to succeed former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and former Rep. Eric Swalwell in Congress, and others that will determine whether San Francisco should further tax wealthy companies or hand out more tax breaks.

Voters in Pelosi's San Francisco district will decide who should advance in the race to represent them after she opted against running for reelection. There are eight Democrats, two Republicans and a no party preference candidate running in the primary. 

In California's 14th Congressional District, candidates will face off to control the seat previously held by former Rep. Eric Swalwell. Swalwell was not running for reelection after launching a bid for governor, but the Dublin politician dropped out of the race and resigned from Congress in April following sexual misconduct allegations, which he denies.

In San Francisco, voters will be deciding on two competing measures, both aimed at how companies are taxed. Under Proposition C, more businesses would be exempt from the Gross Receipts Tax by increasing how much a company can earn before being subject to the tax. If passed, the measure would affect the city's Top Executive Pay Tax by accelerating the tax rate schedule and then stopping any future increases.

The competing measure, Proposition D, aims to adjust the formula for the Top Executive Pay Tax. If approved, it would change the calculation of the tax using the compensation of all employees, not just employees based in San Francisco. If both measures pass, the one that receives more votes would take effect.

In Alameda County, voters will decide whether District Attorney Ursula Jones Dickson should continue to hold office. Competing against her for the top prosecutor's job is Pamela Price, who was recalled by voters in 2024 and was replaced by Jones Dickson, who was appointed to the job by the county's Board of Supervisors. A political newcomer, trial attorney Gopal Krishan, is also running for district attorney.

Several Northern California congressional races reshaped by Proposition 50 may become consequential battlegrounds Tuesday night as crowded primary fields are narrowed in contests that could help shape the fight for control of Congress in November.

In California's 13th Congressional District, Democratic Rep. Adam Gray is seeking reelection after defeating Republican John Duarte by just 187 votes in 2024. The redrawn district now includes part of Stockton and is considered more favorable to Democrats. Among Gray's challengers is Republican Kevin Lincoln II, the former mayor of Stockton.

California's 6th Congressional District has been redrawn to include parts of the Sacramento area, along with Rocklin and Roseville. Rep. Kevin Kiley, who currently represents California's 3rd District, is running as a no party preference candidate after announcing in March that he left the Republican Party. He faces Democrats Lauren Babb Tomlinson, Thien Ho, Dr. Richard Pan, Martha Guerrero and Tyler Vandenberg, along with Republican Michael Stansfield.

With Santa Rosa now added the the district's boundaries and Redding removed, California's 1st District is also expected to be more favorable to being won by a Democrat. The district includes parts of Butte, Glenn, Lake, Lassen, Mendocino, Plumas, Sierra, Sonoma and Tehama counties. The field includes three Democrats – Audrey Denney, Mike McGuire and Janice Karrman – along with Republican James Gallagher and two no party preference candidates, Timothy Kelly and Richard Minner.

Southern California will be closely watched on Tuesday as Los Angeles, the nation's second most populous city, looks to the future of its leadership. Political observers will also pay close attention to election results in the race to represent the newly redrawn 40th Congressional District, a GOP stronghold that stretches across parts of Orange County and the Inland Empire. The contest has pitted two leading congressional Republicans against each other.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass' reelection bid has left her potentially vulnerable after she faced sharp criticisms for the city's preparations and subsequent response to the devastating Palisades Fire in January 2025. Still, she earned endorsements from top Democrats including Gov. Gavin Newsom and former Vice President Kamala Harris. On the campaign trail, Bass has touted a drop in LA's homelessness rate since she took office in 2022.

Former "The Hills" reality TV star Spencer Pratt lost his Pacific Palisades home in the blaze, and has been a vocal critic of Bass' handling of the fire. He's positioned himself as the outsider, non-establishment candidate in a race in which his two main opponents are directly involved in LA politics. Pratt has said that while he's a registered Republican, he's running for mayor as a non-partisan.

LA City Council member Nithya Raman, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, has keyed in on the issue of housing and affordability during her campaign. A longtime ally of Bass, Raman has attacked her over the city's homelessness crisis and skyrocketing housing prices.

Meanwhile, parts of the Inland Empire and Orange County will select two candidates to advance to November's general election for the 40th Congressional District. The district's new boundaries came about after the passage of voter-approved Proposition 50 last year, which retooled districts held by incumbent Republican Rep. Young Kim of Anaheim Hills and longtime Republican Rep. Ken Calvert of Corona, who was first elected to Congress in 1992. Each campaign has focused its attacks on the other, with both Kim and Calvert trumpeting their support for President Trump. Mr. Trump has not endorsed a candidate in the primary.

More candidates added to the mix could complicate the primary, particularly if Kim and Calvert split the vote between Republicans and potentially allow a Democrat to squeeze through in the top two. Esther Kim Varet, an art gallery owner and political newcomer, is viewed as the most viable Democrat, although an all-Republican showdown between Kim and Calvert could be in the cards.

Polls opened at 7 a.m. on Tuesday across California. Ballots must be cast in person or returned before 8 p.m. 

Eligible citizens who missed the May 18 deadline to register to vote can complete the "Same Day" voter registration process on Election Day, at their local county election office or any in-person voting location within their county. 

At in-person polling locations, anyone who was in line before 8 p.m. will still be allowed to cast their ballot, the Secretary of State says. Officials encourage voters to remain in line if they arrived before polls closed.