Steve Hilton and Xavier Becerra lead in California gubernatorial primary as vote counting continues.
In California's open primary to replace term-limited Governor Gavin Newsom, Republican Steve Hilton and Democrat Xavier Becerra emerged as the top two vote-getters. The race remained too close to call for days, with late ballot drops eventually pushing Becerra into the lead and CBS News projecting his advancement to the November runoff. Billionaire Tom Steyer trailed in third place, while the second spot for the general election remained undecided as of the latest reports.
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Divergence score
This event sits in the top 21% of divergence this week. 15 outlets covered it, splitting into 15 framing camps across 4 bias groups.
15 camps
4 bias groups
The spectrum · how 15 outlets placed this story
LeftCenterRight
Washington Examiner
Al Jazeera
CBS News
NPR
Newsmax
CNN
New York Times
Financial Times
Washington Post
The Hill
Daily Wire
NBC News
Reuters
NY Post
Bloomberg
Supportive of action
Neutral
Dismissive
Critical
Alarmist
International angle
The split, in one line
Right-leaning outlets highlight Hilton's early lead and Trump's endorsement, while others note Becerra's late surge and Steyer's spending. Some conservative sources frame the slow count as election fraud, while mainstream outlets report standard verification processes.
How each outlet covered it
Broad agreement on what happened
Outlets across the spectrum land in roughly the same place: the shared language is highlighted.
23LOW DIVERGENCE
THE RIGHT
“California governor’s race: Steve Hilton leads Xavier Becerra, Tom Steyer in first returns”NYP NY Post RIGHT
DOWN THE MIDDLE
“Hilton, Becerra lead in tight primary race for California governor” · Al Jazeera, The Hill, Reuters, Bloomberg
+Hide the full sourcingSee how all 15 outlets put it
LEFT4
NPRNPR Democrat Xavier Becerra wins the top spot in November's race for California governor 51m ago CNNCNN Top political forecaster: no way a Trump pick becomes CA gov 2d ago TNew York Times Steve Hilton Holds Slim Early Lead in California Governor’s Race 2d ago WPWashington Post Hilton, Becerra lead in California’s governor primary. See live results here. 4d ago LEFT-CENTER2
CBSCBS News Becerra advances in California governor's race, CBS News projects 1h ago NBCNBC News Election officials in California say results may be delayed as vote count will continue overnight 1h ago CENTER3
HThe Hill Key questions linger as California wraps up primaries 1d ago RReuters Hilton, Becerra lead in tight primary race for California governor 9h ago BLBloomberg Californians Vote in Nail-Biter $300 Million Race for Newsom’s Successor 3d ago RIGHT-CENTER1
FTFinancial Times Steve Hilton leads California governor primary - Financial Times 2d ago RIGHT4
WEWashington Examiner Hilton, Becerra, Steyer in early lead in California governor’s race as vote count continues 1h ago NMNewsmax Trump: Vote Steve Hilton to Make California Great - Newsmax 3d ago DWDaily Wire Becerra Overtakes Hilton, Advances To Runoff 5h ago NYPNY Post California governor’s race: Steve Hilton leads Xavier Becerra, Tom Steyer in first returns 2d ago Tracked claims from across the political spectrum
Fact ledger
Corroborated
Disputed