California's primary for governor remained too close to call as vote counting continued Wednesday, with Democrat Xavier Becerra and Republican Steve Hilton leading the field and Democrat Tom Steyer in third place.
Under the state's top-two primary system, the two candidates with the most votes will move on to the November general election from a crowded field of 60 names, raising concerns that well-known Democrats could split the vote; former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa was among the entrants and former state Controller Betty Yee will appear on the ballot even though she has withdrawn.
On Tuesday night several major candidates acknowledged they would not become governor, with former Rep. Katie Porter, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan and Villaraigosa conceding they would not advance to November's contest.
Ballot-tracking data heading into Election Day showed registered Democrats voting at a slower pace than Republicans, fueling expectations of a late "blue surge." Democratic strategist Steve Maviglio said, "To me, it's voters hanging onto their ballots until the bitter end."
Observers also noted an unusual reversal in voting patterns this year: Republicans were more likely to vote early by mail while Democratic voters in the deep-blue state held onto mail ballots or chose to vote in person.
Steyer, who has spent heavily on his campaign, has put more than $213 million of his own money into ads, and at his watch party he said, "Together, we've scared the hell out of the corporate interests used to getting their way" and vowed to wait until every ballot is counted.
Tom Steyer's campaign recently ran an ad linking Becerra to a corruption case involving his former chief of staff, and Becerra's campaign responded with a cease-and-desist letter calling the ads "false and defamatory."
The gubernatorial contest has become the most expensive governor's race on record, surpassing $315 million in ad spending and reservations, and it is unfolding as Gov. Gavin Newsom is termed out of the office he currently holds.
A special primary to fill the vacant 14th Congressional District seat will be held June 16 under the current boundaries, and a separate special election in the 1st Congressional District to complete the term of the late Republican U.S. Rep. Doug LaMalfa features a five-person field that would go head-to-head on Aug. 4 if no candidate receives a majority.
As of April 3, about 23.1 million Californians were registered to vote, including about 10.4 million Democrats, about 5.8 million Republicans and about 5.3 million not registered with any party, and about 2.6 million ballots had already been cast as of Thursday.
Some incumbents have altered plans under the new map: Rep. Kevin Kiley left the Republican Party in March to run for reelection as an independent, Republican U.S. Reps. Ken Calvert and Young Kim are competing against each other in the 40th Congressional District, and Democrat Esther Kim Varet is one of several challengers in that race.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass advanced to a November runoff in her bid for a second term, with former reality TV star Spencer Pratt and Los Angeles City Council member Nithya Raman among the leaders behind her in the multi-candidate primary.
Rep. Eric Swalwell suspended his campaign for governor and resigned from Congress in April amid sexual misconduct allegations but will remain on the ballot after missing the deadline to withdraw; Swalwell said in April, "I will fight the serious, false allegations that have been made -- but that's my fight, not a campaign's."
Lowering the cost of living was a central campaign theme across contests, with drivers paying $6.08 per gallon at the pump as of the end of May, $1.65 higher than the national average, according to AAA, and the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst's Office estimating the typical home at about $775,000.
Ballots returned through the mail must be postmarked no later than June 2, and mail-in ballots that are postmarked by Election Day remain valid if they arrive at county election offices by June 9 under state rules.