Becerra Wins California Governor Race, Becoming First Elected Latino Governor in Modern Era

Democrat Xavier Becerra won the California governor's race on Tuesday, defeating Republican Steve Hilton and becoming the state's first elected Latino governor. The Associated Press called the race with only 21 percent of the vote counted, when Becerra led by 19 points. Decision Desk HQ called it at 11:13 p.m. EST, with Becerra ahead 64.6% to 35.6%. Axios reported he is the first Latino governor since 1875. Becerra, a former health secretary in the Biden administration, keeps the office in Democratic hands, which have held it since Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger left in 2011. Elsewhere on the California ballot, a billionaire tax was trailing, and the Los Angeles mayor's race was too close to call, with Nithya Raman holding a narrow but growing lead over incumbent Karen Bass. Nationally, the Los Angeles Times reported that Democrats won control of Congress by flipping both the Senate and the House, though several races remained undecided.

The Los Angeles Times, the left-leaning source, puts Becerra's win inside a wider election-night roundup. Its headline pairs the historic first with Democrats retaking Congress, and it adds the billionaire tax and the Raman-Bass mayoral race, but its excerpt gives no vote percentages and does not mention Hilton. Breitbart and The Daily Signal, on the right, cover only the governor's race and stress the early call and the size of the margin. Breitbart describes the result as a continuation of the status quo. The Daily Signal's headline says California "stays blue" and identifies Becerra as Biden's former health secretary. Neither right-leaning excerpt mentions the historic Latino milestone or the congressional results. All sides agree that Becerra won on Tuesday. They differ in emphasis: the left stresses the history and the national Democratic wins, while the right stresses continuity and his ties to the Biden administration. Axios largely echoes the historic angle.