The morning after a political earthquake rattled the country, the contests for several major races and ballot measures in California remain unsettled. Two facts are indisputable, however: the nationwide shellacking voters gave the Republican Party extended to the Golden State, and the partisan gerrymander war served the Democrats in California and nationwide, at least in the short term.
Still to be decided: the fates of three of five remaining GOP House incumbents in California; the race to replace Nancy Pelosi in District 11; the Los Angeles mayor's race; and more than half the statewide ballot measures, including the controversial billionaire's tax.
On Wednesday morning, there were still 12 California Congressional races yet to be called by the Associated Press. Many of them will decide the fate of the state's few remaining Republican representatives. As the GOP grapples with the aftermath of a midterm election that can only be described as a rebuke of their party's rule, leaders such as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis described the election results as close to "a level extinction event" with consequences that could last more than a decade. In California, this is as close to extinction the GOP's congressional delegation has ever come.
Republican Rep. Tom McClintock easily won his District 5 seat hugging the Nevada border, as did Rep. Vince Fong in the Central Valley's District 20. In the Inland Empire's District 40, one GOP incumbent will prevail, and one will fall by the time that race is decided. As of Wednesday morning, Rep. Ken Calvert was leading Rep. Young Kim.
It's unclear if any other incumbents will join the returning GOP delegation.
In the Central Valley's District 22, Rep. David Valadao was running way behind Democratic challenger Randy Villegas, and the race wasn't called for Villegas until 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, according to the Associated Press.
The Republican Rep. Jay Obernolte's race for reelection remains surprisingly tight in San Bernardino's District 23.
Finally, the new District 48 — once a Republican stronghold that now straddles San Diego and Riverside counties — has the Republican candidate running far behind as of Wednesday morning.
In the Bay Area's District 11, two prominent Democrats were locked in a tight race to replace Rep. Nancy Pelosi. As of Wednesday morning, State Senator Scott Wiener was leading San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan.
In the race for Los Angeles mayor, the Democratic Socialists of America-backed Nithya Raman widened her lead over incumbent Mayor Karen Bass early Wednesday as ballots continued to be counted. Raman, a current city councilwoman, had 51.12% of the vote, compared with 48.88% for Bass. Raman's 16,594-vote lead could grow as Election Day ballots and additional mail-in votes are counted, experts predict, though the race remains too close to call.
Recent voting patterns suggest Raman could benefit from later-counted ballots. An October UC Berkeley IGS/Los Angeles Times poll showed Raman leading Bass 69% to 15% among voters ages 18 to 29, while an analysis by The Basin found younger voters were returning their ballots substantially later than older voters. Raman also overcame a 40,000-vote deficit in the June primary as mail-in ballots were counted. County election officials are expected to release the next results Wednesday afternoon.
Of the 14 statewide ballot measures in California, only propositions 1, 2, 3, 37, and 44 were projected to pass as of Wednesday morning, according to NBC News.
Proposition 39 failed to pass, according to The Associated Press.
The remaining measures remained too close to call Wednesday morning.
They include:
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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