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Raman widens lead over Bass in Los Angeles mayor race as count continues
Councilmember Nithya Raman held 51.67 percent to Mayor Karen Bass at 48.33 percent in the latest Los Angeles County tally, a margin of 26,124 votes. About 842,000 ballots remained to be tallied countywide, so the race was still undecided.
MyNewsLA · 11/4/26
Wiener succeeds Pelosi in San Francisco as Chan concedes
Supervisor Connie Chan conceded the 11th District race to state Senator Scott Wiener late Wednesday, saying she had no clear path to victory. Wiener will succeed retiring Representative Nancy Pelosi after finishing first in the June primary.
USA TODAY · 11/4/26
Becerra agenda takes shape on taxes, power hours and Medi-Cal
Gov.-elect Xavier Becerra is weighing a mileage based road charge, a corporate tax tied to low wage work, and a two hour free electricity program for low income households. He also wants to restore Medi-Cal coverage for undocumented immigrants.
CalMatters · 11/4/26
Democrats flip five California House seats under Proposition 50 map
Democrats flipped five Republican held California House seats under the Proposition 50 map, in Districts 1, 3, 22, 41 and 48, according to updated tallies. The gains expand the new Democratic House majority rather than deciding control of the chamber.
Sheehy Strategy Group · USA TODAY · 11/4/26
Democrats flip four Assembly seats and gain ground in the Senate
Democrats flipped four Republican Assembly seats, in Districts 7, 36, 47 and 58, and appeared to pick up two state Senate seats. Three Assembly races remained too close to call, with the Assembly supermajority standing at 64 to 16 pending those counts.
Sheehy Strategy Group · Palm Springs Desert Sun $ · 11/4/26
Billionaire tax trails and stays uncalled, while Proposition 42 leads
Proposition 40, a one time 5 percent tax on Californians worth more than 1 billion dollars, trailed with 55.6 percent voting no and remained uncalled. Proposition 42, a competing measure barring new taxes on personal assets, was leading with about 54 percent.
Reuters · 11/4/26
Huffman leads in redrawn 2nd District spanning coast and north state
Representative Jared Huffman held about two thirds of the vote in the redrawn 2nd District against Republican Robin Littau as of November 4. The new district joins coastal communities with Shasta, Siskiyou and Modoc counties, which backed Littau in early results.
Campaigns and Ballot Measures
Wahab claims victory in 14th District, Hernandez not conceding
Representative Aisha Wahab declared victory in the 14th District rematch against Melissa Hernandez, who said she is not ready to concede while Alameda County counts ballots. The Associated Press tally showed Wahab leading 68,612 to 52,755, too early to call.
Seven California House districts remain too early to call
The Associated Press listed seven California House districts as too early to call: the 4th, 7th, 11th, 14th, 23rd, 29th and 40th. Democrats had been called as winners in 43 districts and Republicans in two, with counting continuing.
Associated Press · 270toWin · 11/4/26
Recall change, Proposition 5, holds narrow lead in AP tally
Proposition 5, which would require a separate election to choose a successor after a recall, led narrowly in the Associated Press tally, 3,858,254 yes votes to 3,768,482 no votes. The measure remained too early to call with about 60 percent of the estimated vote counted.
Governor
Newsom appoints 23 Superior Court judges and two prison wardens
Governor Gavin Newsom appointed 23 Superior Court judges across 16 counties on November 4, including five in Los Angeles County and four in Sacramento County. He also named two state prison wardens and made appointments to state peace officer standards boards.
Governor of California · Governor of California · 11/4/26
Courts
Voters retain Supreme Court Justices Groban and Evans
Voters gave Supreme Court Justices Joshua Groban and Kelli Evans new 12-year terms in retention voting, with both receiving more than 70 percent yes votes. Results are not yet official, and all precincts were partially reporting.
Horvitz & Levy · 11/4/26
Education
Barrera leads Shaw for superintendent as the job itself changes
San Diego Unified board president Richard Barrera held a 14 point lead over Chino Valley board president Sonja Shaw for superintendent of public instruction. The winner takes office in January as a state law reshapes the superintendent role and department management.
EdSource · 11/4/26
Wildfire and Insurance
Stanford report puts wildfire costs to ratepayers at nearly 9 billion dollars
A Stanford report released November 4 found wildfire costs passed from utilities to ratepayers rose from 488 million dollars in 2019 to nearly 9 billion dollars in 2024. It urges more home hardening, prescribed burns and community protection to cut future losses.
Phys.org · 11/4/26
Kim leads Allen for insurance commissioner with count continuing
Jane Kim led Ben Allen 52 percent to 48 percent for insurance commissioner, by more than 265,000 votes on Wednesday morning, with many ballots still uncounted. The winner succeeds Ricardo Lara, who is term limited, and inherits the state homeowners insurance crisis.
Insurance Journal · 11/4/26
Health
Voters reject Proposition 44 clinic spending mandate by wide margin
Voters rejected Proposition 44 by about 82 percent to 18 percent, defeating a union backed measure that would have required community health clinics to spend at least 90 percent of revenue on patient care. Opponents warned the mandate could close clinics serving 7 million residents.
New York Post · Morningstar · 11/4/26
Immunology bond, Proposition 38, leads with 55.78 percent
Proposition 38 was leading with 55.78 percent voting yes, which would authorize 8.4 billion dollars in bonds for immunology and immunotherapy research. About half the money would go to one University of California affiliated institute under the measure.
Morningstar · 11/4/26
Housing
Proposition 37 homebuyer loans approved, program rules still to come
The Associated Press called Proposition 37 for the yes side with about 60 percent in favor, creating a homebuyer loan program of up to 25 billion dollars. The housing finance agency still must set rates and rules before loans can be offered.
New York Post · 11/4/26
State awards 9.14 million dollars more for factory built housing
The California Strategic Growth Council awarded 9.14 million dollars more for factory built housing planning, building on 10 million dollars awarded in August. Projects include a 72 unit affordable pilot in Oakland, mass timber work in Tahoe Truckee and modular housing in Los Angeles County.
California Strategic Growth Council · 11/2/26
Local Spotlight
Bay Area transit tax passes, BART still faces a structural shortfall
Bay Area voters approved the Regional Transit Measure, expected to raise 1 billion dollars a year for BART, Muni, Caltrain and other agencies. BART said the tax gives it 310 million dollars a year from fiscal 2028 but leaves a structural shortfall to close.
KION Central Coast · 11/4/26
Washington
Trump blames candidates and Iran war after midterm losses
President Donald Trump blamed Republican candidates and the war in Iran for midterm losses that gave Democrats at least 54 Senate seats and control of the House. Trump said he had spoken with several Democrats and pointed to his veto power.
Washington Examiner · 11/4/26
House Democrats recruit oversight staff as investigations take shape
House Judiciary Committee Democrats launched a recruitment page Wednesday for lawyers and investigative staff for the next Congress. Long Beach Representative Robert Garcia, in line to chair the Oversight Committee, has told President Trump to lawyer up as investigations are prepared.