California gubernatorial primary results still undecided
California's gubernatorial primary remains too close to call with vote counting continuing, leaving voters waiting to know which two candidates will advance to November's general election.
Objective Facts
The primary election for California governor is too close to call, with vote counting continuing Wednesday. Democrat Xavier Becerra and Republican business executive Steve Hilton lead the field with Democrat Tom Steyer in third place. As of Thursday afternoon, Hilton leads Becerra by one percentage point with just 58% of ballots tallied. Under California's top-two primary system, the two candidates with the most votes advance to November regardless of party affiliation. Democratic candidates typically gain ground as more mail ballots are counted, as Democrats are more likely to vote by mail while Republicans prefer Election Day voting.
Left-Leaning Perspective
California Democratic Party Chairperson Rusty Hicks told ABC News that Trump's fraud claims were 'baseless' and affirmed 'Everyone knows California will complete a fair and accurate count.' Gubernatorial candidate Xavier Becerra responded on social media that Trump is 'trying to undermine confidence in our elections because he's a repeat loser here.' State Assemblymember Marc Berman, a Democrat who authored the bill accelerating ballot counting, denounced Trump's comments as disappointing and 'a lie.' Gov. Gavin Newsom's press office responded by posting a CNN video explaining how California prioritizes accuracy and accessibility over speed, with Newsom's office noting 'For the record: we wish the votes were counted faster, too.' Democrats frame the slow count as a necessary tradeoff to ensure voter access and ballot accuracy. Berman further argued that Trump's fraud allegations aim to undermine democracy to enable restrictive voting policies like Voter ID laws. Tom Steyer, trailing in third place, wrote 'We count every ballot. Thank you for your patience as we give democracy time to work,' describing the gradual release of results as expected since voters submitted ballots over time. Democratic coverage downplays the slowness of California's process relative to other states and emphasizes the administrative complexity of mail-ballot verification rather than partisan intent.
Right-Leaning Perspective
President Donald Trump told reporters 'You see what's happening in California, they're rigging the election,' announced his Department of Justice was investigating the count, and suggested Democrats were 'somehow cheating so two candidates he favors — Hilton and Pratt — would be bumped from the top two slots.' Trump wrote on social media 'The Dumocrats are at it again!' and stated 'They are trying to STEAL THE GOVERNOR OF CALIFORNIA PRIMARY, AND THE MAYOR OF LOS ANGELES, PRIMARY, AWAY FROM TWO GREAT REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES. Here we go with the very late and massive numbers of MAIL IN BALLOTS.' Steve Hilton, Hilton stated Californians should not have to wait so long for results. Hilton proposed compromise positions, saying 'I think there were points of consensus that everyone can get behind some degree of early voting: making Election Day a holiday, mail-in votes for those who need it by request.' Rep. Kevin Kiley (independent-GOP) wrote that 'Every other state manages to count its votes in a somewhat timely manner' and 'California's inability to competently handle the basic administration of democracy is embarrassing.' Pollster Nate Silver, a top political analyst, warned that California elections 'often can't be resolved for weeks is kind of insane and not common in other electoral systems around the world.' Right-leaning sources note that late-arriving mail ballots shift results toward Democrats because Republicans vote early or on Election Day (counted first), while Democrats mail ballots later, and this gradual shift 'has sparked all sorts of conspiracy theories.'
Deep Dive
California's gubernatorial primary remained undecided as of June 5, 2026, because the state allows mail ballots to be counted for up to a week after Election Day if postmarked by election day. California is notorious for a drawn-out vote count as local election officials work through millions of mail ballots, some arriving after Election Day, with the California Voter Foundation describing this as a 'pig in a python' effect that takes days or weeks to clear. With Hilton leading Becerra by only one percentage point at 58% of votes counted as of Thursday afternoon, the race remained genuinely competitive. The dispute hinges on whether this process reflects necessary trade-offs or problematic incompetence. Concerns about California's vote count are not entirely partisan—voting advocates have urged state lawmakers to better fund local election offices to process late-arriving ballots faster. Nate Silver, a nonpartisan political analyst, called prolonged counts 'failed state' behavior and argued the public has become too accepting of drawn-out vote counts. However, Republican election official Stephen Richer acknowledged 'We might not like how California administers its elections (and I don't)' but stated 'that doesn't make it fraud.' The authentic disagreement is whether the system should be reformed for speed or whether accuracy justifies the delay. Watch for whether Becerra or Steyer ultimately finishes in the top two as mail ballots are counted, which would dramatically alter the general election matchup. As more votes are counted, it wouldn't be a surprise to see Democratic candidates improve their standing compared to Republicans, a pattern typical in California elections. Counties need to finalize their election results by July 2, 2026.