The final spot on the November ballot in the California governor’s race may be filled today
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Will Republican Steve Hilton be the one challenging Democrat Xavier Becerra in November to become California’s next governor? That appears very likely, but one week after the June 2 primary Hilton has still not clinched a spot on the ballot. The Associated Press declared Becerra a winner Friday night but has yet to proclaim Hilton to be the second place finisher. Others ...
Former Fox News host Steve Hilton, a Republican candidate for governor, speaks during a California Chamber of Commerce panel discussion with other gubernatorial candidates at SAFE Credit Union Convention Center in Sacramento, California.
PAUL KITAGAKI JR./The Sacramento Bee/TNS
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Will Republican Steve Hilton be the one challenging Democrat Xavier Becerra in November to become California’s next governor?
That appears very likely, but one week after the June 2 primary Hilton has still not clinched a spot on the ballot. The Associated Press declared Becerra a winner Friday night but has yet to proclaim Hilton to be the second place finisher.
Others have already given Hilton the nod, and both he and Becerra have events planned in Southern California Tuesday as they launch their general election campaigns. (The Los Angeles Times usually relies on the Associated Press to declare winners.)
Under California’s primary system, only the two candidates who receive the most votes in the primary advance to the November general election, regardless of their party affiliation.
Democrat Tom Steyer, a hedge fund founder turned climate change activist, remains in third place in the gubernatorial vote count. Steyer has been gaining ground on Hilton as the statewide vote count continues but still faces long odds to catch him.
In a CNN interview on Monday, Hilton said he remains very confident that he’ll secure a spot on the November ballot, saying, “Tom Steyer is just not getting the numbers he needs to catch up with us.”
Still, Hilton has criticized California’s slow vote-counting process, saying the delays “breed confusion, frustration, speculation, and distrust.”