AP Calls California Governor's Race for Democrat Xavier Becerra
The Associated Press declared Democrat Xavier Becerra the winner of California's governor's race on Tuesday night, just after polls closed at 8 p.m. Pacific Time, defeating Republican Steve Hilton. The AP said it declares a winner at poll closing time in races not expected to be competitive when all available evidence points to an overwhelming victory.
In the AP's count, with roughly a tenth of the estimated vote tallied, Becerra had 747,595 votes to Hilton's 545,953. California's other statewide races and its ballot propositions had not been called as of publication, and counting was continuing.
Becerra, 68, was born in Sacramento. He served more than a decade in the U.S. House of Representatives, became California attorney general in 2017, and served as U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) from 2021 to 2025. He will succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom and is scheduled to take office on January 4, 2027.
During the campaign, Becerra pledged to speed up building permits, use public land and state financing to get more homes built, and enforce housing laws against cities that fall short of their obligations. On health care, he proposed automating Medi-Cal renewals so eligible patients do not lose coverage over paperwork, and creating a fraud task force to go after abuses in hospice care and other services.
Hilton, the Republican nominee, is a businessman and a former Fox News host. Democrats hold a large registration advantage in California, and Republicans have not won a statewide race there in many years.
Related: Midterms: Major U.S. Networks Project Democrats Retake House Control
(Source: Associated Press)
Source: Associated Press
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：Xavier Becerra 官方肖像（其任美国卫生与公众服务部部长期间）。照片：美国卫生与公众服务部，公共领域，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: Official portrait of Xavier Becerra during his tenure as U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services. Photo by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
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