THE CAPITOL BRIEF
Top Stories
Democrat Xavier Becerra will succeed Governor Gavin Newsom after defeating Republican Steve Hilton in the race for governor, a win the Associated Press called on election night and that makes Becerra, the son of Mexican immigrants, the first Latino governor in California in modern history.
Becerra, who served more than a decade in Congress, as California attorney general, and as U.S. secretary of health and human services in the Biden administration, presented himself as a steady, establishment Democrat, ran on lowering the cost of living and defending California against the Trump administration, and pledged to take on wildfire liability and to work to keep Californians insured in the face of federal health care cutbacks, while inheriting budget shortfalls and having shared few concrete agenda details during the campaign.
Source: Politico California
California voters weighed 14 statewide propositions in a cycle in which the campaigns for and against the measures spent nearly $1 billion, the most in state history on ballot measures.
In early returns, Proposition 1, authorizing $11.25 billion in borrowing for housing, Proposition 2, expanding deposits to the state rainy day fund, Proposition 3, making the high earner income tax for K-12 schools permanent, and Proposition 37, creating a loan fund for middle income homebuyers, had passed, while Proposition 39, on voter identification, and Proposition 44, requiring clinics to spend at least 90 percent of revenue on patient care, were failing, and Proposition 40, the one time 5 percent tax on billionaires, was trailing with just over 56 percent opposed, as its rival Proposition 42, which would make new wealth taxes harder, led with more than 54 percent in favor.
Source: CalMatters
Los Angeles Councilmember Nithya Raman pulled narrowly ahead of Mayor Karen Bass, her onetime political ally, in partial returns released early Wednesday in the race for mayor of Los Angeles.
Late arriving ballots in the coming days tend to be cast by younger voters, who are Raman's base, while the first ballots counted skew older and more conservative.
Bass, 73, was backed by the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor and the county Democratic Party, took 34 percent in the June 2 primary, and touted an 11 percent drop in unsheltered homelessness, while Raman, 45, first elected to the council in 2020, vowed to cut street homelessness in half citywide by summer 2028 and to start the process of replacing Police Chief Jim McDonnell on her first day in office, and an October UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll co-sponsored by the Los Angeles Times had the two tied at 40 percent each.
Source: Los Angeles Times
Press Conferences and Media Briefings
No press conference or media briefing by a state official for Wednesday, November 4 was publicly announced in the sources checked this morning.
Inside the Legislature
No Senate or Assembly floor sessions are scheduled for Wednesday, November 4. The Senate website lists Today's Events for November 4, 2026 as: The Senate has adjourned for Final Recess.
Source: California State Senate
The Governor's Office
No new release was posted by the Governor's office on November 3 in the sources checked this morning. The office's newsroom lists its most recent releases as dated November 2, 2026.
Fundraising
No campaign fundraiser for Wednesday, November 4 was publicly posted or announced in the sources checked this morning.
New Appointments
No new appointments were announced by the Governor's office on November 3 in the sources checked this morning.
People and Moves
No personnel move in California government or campaigns was publicly announced on November 3 in the sources checked this morning.
Boards and Commissions
No board or commission meeting for Wednesday, November 4 was listed in the sources checked this morning. The California Public Utilities Commission upcoming events page lists its next voting meeting on November 19, 2026 at 11:00 a.m. at the California State Personnel Board Auditorium, 801 Capitol Mall, Sacramento, CA 95814, and an Energy Division Open House on November 12, 2026 at 12:00 p.m., held virtually via Webex.
Source: California Public Utilities Commission
Reports and Studies
The Legislative Analyst's Office lists its most recent item as a handout dated October 21, 2026, New Judgeships, Trial Court Judges' Salaries, and Court Facility Projects, presented to Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Subcommittee No. 5 on Corrections, Public Safety, Judiciary, Labor and Transportation, preceded by The 2026-27 California Spending Plan: Health, dated October 19, 2026. No LAO publication dated October 22 to November 4 was listed this morning.
Source: Legislative Analyst's Office
Talks and Addresses
No speech or address by a state official for Wednesday, November 4 was publicly announced in the sources checked this morning.
Conferences and Events
Sacramento: Capitol Weekly and the University of California Student and Policy Center present A Post-Mortem of the 2026 Election on Thursday, November 5, 2026, from 9:15 a.m. to 3:25 p.m., with check in and coffee at 8:30 a.m., at the UC Student and Policy Center in Sacramento, with attendance also available by Zoom. There is no cost to attend, and registration is required.
The program opens with an introduction and welcome by Catharine Baker of the UC Student and Policy Center and Tim Foster of Open California, followed at 9:30 a.m. by Blue Wave or Washout, with Sean Clegg of Bearstar Strategies, Rusty Hicks of the California Democratic Party, Lindsay Hopkins of SEIU California, and Andre Levesque of Gilliard Blanning and Levesque, moderated by Laurel Rosenhall of the New York Times.
At 10:40 a.m., The Ballot Initiatives features Brandon Castillo of Bicker Castillo Fairbanks and Spitz Public Affairs, Teri Holoman of the California Teachers Association, Thad Kousser of UC San Diego, and Rob Lapsley of the California Business Roundtable, moderated by Seema Mehta of the Los Angeles Times.
At 11:45 a.m., The View from the Parties features Robin Swanson of the California Democratic Party and David Wilson of Red Dog Inc., moderated by Leah O'Tarrow of Capitol Weekly.
At 12:30 p.m., the Luncheon Keynote, The Polls, features Mark Baldassare of the Public Policy Institute of California, Shakari Byerly of Evitarus, Mark Di Camillo of the Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies, and Paul Mitchell of Political Data Inc., moderated by Ashley Zavala of KCRA 3.
At 1:45 p.m., Capitol Weekly editor Rich Ehisen interviews Francisco Silva of the California Primary Care Association on The New Governor, Xavier Becerra. At 2:30 p.m., The Dem on Dem Races features Ruth Bernstein of EMC Research, Jorge Contreras of the Working Families Party, Doug Herman of The Strategy Group, Nairka Joe Trevino Muller of Mai Vang for Congress, Brian Parvizshahi of Eric Jones for Congress, and Bill Wong of Doris Matsui for Congress, moderated by Jenny Huh of ABC 10.
Source: Capitol Weekly
Rallies and Protests
No rally or protest at the Capitol on Wednesday, November 4 was announced in the sources checked this morning.
Odds and Ends
The Secretary of State's election results site lists the November 3, 2026 general election results as unofficial election night results, states that results will be certified by December 11, 2026, and states that vote by mail, provisional, and other ballots will continue to be processed and counted after election night, and that results will change throughout the ballot counting canvass period.
Source: Secretary of State
BerlinRosen is offering interviews throughout the week with California election officials, democracy experts, and community leaders on voter protection, election interference, and the counting of every vote, as ballots continue to be counted in the state's competitive House races.
Available are former Shasta County Clerk and Registrar of Voters Cathy Darling Allen, Yolo County Registrar of Voters Jesse Salinas, Political Data Inc. Vice President Paul Mitchell, CHIRLA Executive Director Angélica Salas, OC Action Executive Director Jonathan Paik, Catalyst California Senior Director Aaron Robertson, Bay Resistance Organizing Director Jane Martin, Power CA Action Political Director Marisa Moraza, Community Coalition President and CEO Alberto Retana, and California Calls Political Director Eddie Thomas.
Source: BerlinRosen
Lobbying and Campaign Filings
Lobbying registration renewal for the 2027-2028 legislative session is taking place from November 1 to December 31, 2026, according to the Secretary of State's Political Reform Division. The division administers the Political Reform Act, and electronic data received by the Secretary of State is published on Cal-Access, the state's campaign and lobbying information system. No new lobbyist registration, lobbyist termination, lobbying client deletion, or candidate intention statement was listed in the Cal-Access pages checked this morning.
Source: Secretary of State
Campaign Notes
In the Secretary of State's unofficial results as of 2:41 a.m. on November 4, 2026, the statewide ballot measures stood as follows.
Proposition 1, authorizes bonds for housing affordability programs, yes 59.4 percent; Proposition 2, increases the state's rainy day fund, yes 59.6 percent; Proposition 3, provides permanent funding for schools and health care by extending the existing tax on high incomes, yes 58.7 percent.
Proposition 4, repeals the prohibition against public funding of election campaigns, no 51.9 percent; Proposition 5, changes the recall election process for statewide officers, yes 50.3 percent; Proposition 37, creates a loan program for middle income buyers of qualified new homes, yes 61.0 percent; Proposition 38, authorizes bonds for immunology medical research, yes 55.7 percent.
Proposition 39, prohibits citizens from voting unless they present government issued identification, no 58.6 percent; Proposition 40, imposes a one time tax on certain taxpayers, no 55.6 percent, with yes at 3,419,197 votes and no at 4,277,735 votes; Proposition 41, prohibits new state taxes that exclude revenues from the state spending limit and requires audits for new state special taxes, no 52.4 percent; Proposition 42, prohibits new state personal property taxes and certain retroactive state taxes, yes 54.3 percent.
Proposition 43, limits voters' ability to raise revenues for local government services, no 54.9 percent; Proposition 44, requires community health clinics to spend 90 percent of revenue on program services, no 81.8 percent; and Proposition 45, modifies environmental review for certain projects, no 54.1 percent. See also the Top Stories item on the ballot measures.
Source: Secretary of State
The Climate Center reacted to the Associated Press call of the governor's race for Xavier Becerra with a statement from CEO Kat Lockwood saying the governor-elect's task is putting California back on track to meet its climate goals while delivering on his promise to make the state more affordable.
Lockwood called restoring California's climate ambition fundamental to addressing the affordability crisis, pointing to climate-fueled wildfire damage and rising food, insurance, and electricity prices, and said the center looks forward to working with the administration to accelerate the clean energy transition and move the economy off fossil fuels.
Source: The Climate Center