California primary election: live results

Voters on Tuesday head to the polls for California’s pivotal primary, which could help determine whether Democrats will gain control of the House in the November midterms.

The Golden State is home to 10 of the most competitive House races in the nation, virtually all currently held by Republicans. The state is a key to the Democratic Party’s plan to net the 23 seats it needs to flip the House majority in November.

But uncertainty abounds thanks to the state’s “jungle primary” system, where the top two vote-getters advance to the general election regardless of party affiliation.

The unusual dynamic threatens to keep the Democrats shut out of key House battles, eliminating any chance of competing in top races. It could also keep Republicans off the ballot in the governor’s race, an outcome that could deal a blow to GOP turnout in November.

The polls close at 11 p.m. EDT. Follow below as The Hill provide live updates and analysis throughout the day.

Democratic state senator recalled over gas tax

3:22 a.m.

California Democratic state Sen. Josh Newman will be recalled from office after voting in favor of the state’s gas tax, a result that could prove to be an ominous sign for Democrats in the fall.

Newman will be replaced in the state senate by former Assemblywoman Ling Ling Chang (R), which will break up the Democratic Party’s supermajority in the body, making it harder for Democrats to pass through legislation at will.

The incumbent’s support of the gas tax was the central focus of the recall effort against him, and the effort’s success will raise Republican hopes that their candidates can run on the issue in the fall. Without legitimate chances of winning the governor or Senate races, Republicans have coalesced around the gas tax as way to motivate the base. GOP Rep. Mimi Walters, one of the most vulnerable incumbents this cycle, has been a vocal opponent of the tax hike.

Newman’s former state Senate seat overlaps with the congressional district of retiring Rep. Ed Royce (R-Calif.), one of the top House seats on the map in November. So the area will be home to two high-profile clashes in the fall, as Democrats look to win back the state Senate seat and flip Royce’s House seat.

– Ben Kamisar

Warren-backed Dem hangs on to second place in Walters race

3 a.m.

With 61 percent of precincts reporting, Democrat Katie Porter holds firm in second place in the race against GOP Rep. Mimi Walters.

Porter, a professor at University of California, Irvine, who was backed by Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), holds a slight edge over Democrat Dave Min.

Min, who’s also a professor at UC Irvine, was the favorite of California Democrats, scoring an endorsement from the state party at its convention in February.

If Porter pulls off a win, that’ll be a big victory for a candidate who supports Medicare-for-all. Porter and two other Democratic candidates favored a single-payer health care system, but Min hadn’t fully embraced it. He said instead that he supports steps toward achieving universal health care.

– Lisa Hagen

Rohrabacher advances 

– Ben Kamisar 

Cisneros gets some breathing room in Royce race

Keirstead still leads for No. 2 spot amid potential tabulation issue

Top two trouble in race for Rohrabacher seat

1:01 a.m.

Democrats aren’t out of the woods yet, with a potential shutout still looming in the race against GOP Rep. Dana Rohrabacher.

With 12 percent of precincts reporting, Rohrabacher is in first with nearly 30 percent of the vote, followed by Democrat Hans Keirstead in second place with 18.7 percent. But Republican Scott Baugh is right behind Keirstead, with 18 percent.

Meredith Kelly, the communications director for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), told ABC News in an interview early Wednesday morning that it’s “too close to comment” on whether Democrats get shut out here.

But things are likely to get more complicated with reports that there’s been a tabulation error in Orange County that could be hurting Democrat Harley Rouda, who’s currently in fourth place.

Dave Wasserman, a House analyst with Cook Political Report, said the rumored error “could be costing Harley Rouda about 2,000 votes.” If that’s the case, there’d be a tight race for second place between Baugh, Rouda and Keirstead.

– Lisa Hagen

Newsom qualifies for November runoff

12:17 a.m.

BURLINGAME, Calif. — Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has taken the top spot in California’s all-party primary contest to replace retiring Gov. Jerry Brown (D), guaranteeing him a spot in November’s runoff.

The Associated Press said Newsom had made the runoff at 12:17 p.m. Eastern time. With 15 percent of precincts reporting, Newsom held 34 percent of the vote.

Businessman John Cox (R) is in second place, at 27 percent of the vote. Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D) was trailing at 11 percent.

– Reid Wilson

Villaraigosa asks to extend Los Angeles voting

12:10 a.m.

Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D) is asking Los Angeles’ chief elections official to keep polling places open until Friday after a printing error inadvertently left 118,000 voters off the rolls.

The voters left off the list will still be able to cast provisional ballots, but Villaraigosa’s campaign said voters should still be allowed to cast regular ballots.

“Anyone who is turned away should be allowed to return to a vote center and make sure their vote is counted,” Villaraigosa’s campaign manager Pat Dennis said in a statement sent 48 minutes after the polls closed. “This election is too important, and every voice should be heard.”

L.A. is Villaraigosa’s home base, and without a strong showing there his campaign is likely doomed. Before any L.A. votes were reported, Villaraigosa languished in fourth place, with just 10 percent of the vote, behind Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom (D), businessman John Cox (R) and Assemblyman Travis Allen (R).

Villaraigosa asked Secretary of State Alex Padilla (D) to investigate how so many voters could have been left off the rolls.

– Reid Wilson

Dems in early lead for second spot in 39th District

Feinstein advances to November election

11:27 p.m.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D) has secured the top spot in November’s runoff as she seeks a fifth full term in the Senate.

The Associated Press projected Feinstein would claim first place in the all-party primary at 11:27 p.m. EST. With just three percent of precincts reporting and virtually no results from California’s big urban cores, Feinstein led the crowded field with 40 percent of the vote.

Republican businessman James Bradley held an early lead over former state Senate President Kevin de Leon (D), though 97 percent of precincts remain to report. The AP has not called a winner of the second spot in November’s runoff.

L.A. voter roll glitch ensnares The Fonz

Glitch leaves over 100k voters’ names off registers in L.A. county

9:22 p.m.

Hundreds of thousands of voters’ names were accidentally left off the rosters in Los Angeles County because of a printing error, according to the Los Angeles Times.

About 2.3 percent of registered voters in the county — or 118,522 voters — were missing from the lists for Tuesday’s primaries. But those voters are still able to cast provisional ballots, though they won’t be verified right away.

This will have an impact in more than a dozen House districts, but will likely have the most dramatic effect on the race to replace retiring GOP Rep. Ed Royce, where Democrats are most fearful of a shutout.

Democrats are worried that the six Democratic candidates could split up the vote and lead to two Republicans making it on to the general election ballot thanks to the state’s “jungle” primary system.

If the margin remains extremely close in the 39th District into the wee hours of Wednesday morning, it’s possible it could take days or even weeks to count the provisional ballots. That primary cliffhanger would leave Democrats on edge in a district that is highly winnable in the fall.

– Lisa Hagen

Democrats, Republicans bracing for shutouts 

8:55 p.m.

California’s “jungle” primary system presents a unique challenge for the two major political parties: the prospect of failing to qualify a candidate for the general election ballot in November’s midterms.

Tuesday’s primaries pit all the candidates against each other on one ballot, with the top two advancing to November regardless of party affiliation. So it’s possible that two candidates from the same party finish in the top two slots, particularly in districts with so many candidates.

The threats are the largest in the races to replace retiring California Republican Reps. Ed Royce and Darrell Issa, as well as in the district where Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.) is running for reelection.

In the Royce and Rohrabacher districts, it appears possible that Democrats could find themselves shut out in November, while in the Issa district, there are so many viable candidates that either party could find itself without a candidate in the top two. 

Shutouts in either of these districts would complicate each party’s path to the majority in 2018 — Republicans are fighting national trends to keep their incumbents from being knocked off in November, while Democrats need to flip a net of 23 seats in order to win the majority.

So while a shutout in June may take a winnable race off the board for either party, there are more than enough seats left for either to still have a real shot at the majority. 

– Ben Kamisar

High stakes draw heavy spending

8:05 p.m.

California is pivotal for both parties’ plan to take the House majority in November, so the state has seen significant spending by a bevy of groups meant to boost either their party or their chosen candidate.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) has spent almost $5 million on attempting to influence Republican turnout. The vast majority of that has been on ads attacking Republican candidates in the hopes of helping Democrats leapfrog over them.

The DCCC has spent about $1.7 million against Republican former state Assemblyman Scott Baugh in the hopes of keeping him out of the top two slots in the 48th Congressional District, and a similar sum against GOP Assemblyman Rocky Chavez, who is running in the 49th District.

The organization has also spent about $1.5 million against Republican candidates in the 39th District to keep Republicans from winning the second slot in the race to replace retiring Rep. Ed Royce (R-Calif.).

And it’s spending about $140,000 to boost a lesser-known GOP candidate in the 48th to further divide the GOP vote.

The DCCC is also spending to help Democrats, specifically Gil Cisneros in the 39th and Harley Rouda in the 48th. 

The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) has focused its spending on broader turnout efforts instead of targeting specific candidates — it launched a six-figure digital ad and text message strategy targeted at GOP voters in those three key districts.

There has also been a flurry of outside spending. A handful of Democratic groups have spent millions promoting their own candidates, with much of the outside spending going to Sara Jacobs, a Democratic candidate in the 49th District whose wealthy family has helped to bankroll a super PAC boosting her candidacy.

And the Congressional Leadership Fund, a super PAC aligned with House GOP leadership, quietly spent $1.5 million in the 39th, 48th and 49th districts in order to counter the Democratic plan and secure a spot for GOP candidates on the ballot. 

– Ben Kamisar

Trump on voters’ minds

3:05 p.m.

HALF MOON BAY, Calif. — Five hundred days into his term in office, President Trump is top of mind for many voters casting ballots in California today, even if he won’t be on the ballot for another two years.

In interviews Tuesday morning, most voters said they were thinking of Trump and his high-profile fights with California officials over immigration and health care, even as they cast ballots for state offices.

“I don’t like what they’ve done to Donald Trump,” said Janice Umland, a dental hygienist in Burlingame who voted for businessman John Cox (R). “I’m tired of people bashing someone who’s just trying to do the right thing.”

“It’s all about the president,” she said of her vote.

Kirk Hawkins, who works in commercial insurance, said his votes for Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) and Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D) were cast with an eye toward resisting Trump’s agenda.

“If you look at it as a chessboard, you need to set it opposite the other side. And Gavin is the king we need,” Hawkins said. Of Feinstein, he added: “Right now she’s one of the strongest voices we have.”

Kory Mingus, a legal assistant in Half Moon Bay, said he voted for Feinstein as “a bulwark against Trump.”

Several voters who said they cast ballots for Republicans cited California’s status as a “sanctuary state” as a focal point. Trump’s Justice Department has said California and dozens of other jurisdictions are ineligible for law enforcement grants because they prohibit police agencies from enforcing federal immigration laws in some cases.

“If illegal by definition means it’s against the law, don’t ignore the law, change the law,” said Steven Patton, a structural engineer in Half Moon Bay who voted Republican for governor. “When you think about our tax dollars paying for people who might not even be paying taxes, that’s ridiculous.”

– Reid Wilson

GOP super PAC quietly spent to boost candidates

2:48 p.m.

Republican outside groups mounted a behind-the-scenes effort to marshal support to favored House candidates in California’s unusual “jungle primary” system.

The Congressional Leadership Fund, a super PAC with ties to House GOP leadership, funded the effort to air television commercials and build out a ground game for six GOP candidates. The group targeted three districts: the 39th, 48th and 49th.

In California, the entire field of candidates runs on the same ballot and the top two candidates advance to a general election, regardless of party. So it’s possible that divided fields could lead to a political party being shut out of advancing any candidates into a general election for a specific seat.

Democrats have telegraphed their heavy spending in these districts for weeks, part of the party’s efforts to ensure it won’t be shut out of any of these key races. But Republicans appeared to be taking a more hands-off approach, at least until the Congressional Leadership Fund’s plans were revealed.

The Congressional Leadership Fund spent $1.5 million on the effort, passing the money to another outside group, the American Future Fund, to spend on its behalf. Thanks to federal election laws that didn’t require the spending to be disclosed until regular campaign finance filings in July, the Congressional Leadership Fund was able to spend without raising eyebrows.

In the 39th District race to replace retiring Rep. Ed Royce (R-Calif.), the effort boosted Assemblywoman Young Kim and former state Senate Minority Leader Bob Huff.

In the 48th District, the effort aided two Republicans, Rep. Dana Rohrabacher and former Assemblyman Scott Baugh.

And in the race to replace Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) in the 49th District, the effort boosted local public official Dianne Harkey and state Assemblyman Rocky Chavez.

Politico first reported the connection between the American Future Fund spending and the Congressional Leadership Fund. 

– Ben Kamisar

No-party voters outnumber Republicans in California

12:15 p.m.

BURLINGAME, Calif. — The number of California voters who decline to register with a political party now tops the number of voters who affiliate with the GOP, a first in state history and an indication of the struggle Republicans have in competing in the heart of the resistance to President Trump.

Figures from Secretary of State Alex Padilla’s (D) office, released two weeks before Tuesday’s primary election, show 4,852,817 unaffiliated voters and 4,769,299 registered Republicans.

The share of unaffiliated voters has doubled since 1998, while the share of Republicans has slumped 10 percentage points over the same time. Republicans hit a peak of almost 5.4 million voters in 2006.

Democratic voters, on the other hand, have held steady to their share of the overall electorate. Today, 44 percent of the electorate — 8,438,268 voters — are registered Democrats, about the same as pre-election reports issued in 2014, 2010, 2006 and 2002.

The most heavily Democratic counties are in the Bay Area. More than half of those registered to vote affiliate with the Democratic Party in San Francisco; Alameda County, home of Oakland; Marin County, on the north side of the Golden Gate Bridge; Santa Cruz County; and Sonoma County.

The most heavily Republican counties in the state are northern rural counties, outposts of conservatism where secession movements have gained attention at times in recent decades. Modoc County, which borders Oregon and Nevada, is the only county in California where more than half the registered voters are Republicans. Neighboring Lassen County and Shasta County, and Amador County, southwest of Lake Tahoe, are all more than 45 percent Republican.

In what may be a troubling sign for Republicans, only a tiny percentage of the youngest generation of voters are choosing the GOP. California allows 16- and 17-year-olds to pre-register to vote. Of the 67,883 teenagers who have pre-registered, just 9.4 percent affiliate with Republicans; 37 percent chose Democrats; and 45 percent declined to affiliate with any party.

– Reid Wilson

House Republicans target 100,000 California voters with primary day text program