Hilton, Pratt Lead California Races, June 2 Primary Takeaways

Los Angeles surprised us all. I didn’t think the far left city could make a rational choice.

While a large number of ballots remain to be counted, political observers increasingly view a Bass-Pratt matchup as the most likely outcome.

Keep an eye out for last minute additive votes.

California is slowly counting the votes in its closely watched June 2 gubernatorial contest, with results showing Republican Steve Hilton and Democrat Xavier Becerra at the top of the heap. But we know how these things roll.

With roughly half of the votes counted by 2 am ET on June 3, Hilton, a former Fox News host endorsed by Trump, stood in first with about 27%, followed by Becerra, a former Biden administration official, holding roughly 26%.

Spencer Pratt: “I didn't know I'd be here tonight, but this is obviously God's plan, and I'm going to go all the way, and I'm going to show everybody that I'm their mayor.” pic.twitter.com/EEjPAfLc0s

— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) June 3, 2026

🚨Election Fraud News:

Gavin Newsom authorized an emergency law shortly before today’s primary allowing mail-in ballot signatures not matching the voter’s registration record to get counted while going unchallenged.

What is your message to him about that? pic.twitter.com/tKIqq9OYTS

— Max Bonilla (@outragedteen_) June 2, 2026

Steve Hilton in the governor’s race and Spencer Pratt in the contest for mayor in Los Angeles both looked strong on Tuesday night. Sacramento Bee: As of 8:58 p.m., Republican former Fox News host Steve Hilton has 26.6% of the vote, compared to 26.0% for Democrats Xavier Becerra and 19.8% for Tom Steyer in the primary race for California governor, according to initial reports from the Secretary of State’s office. The outcome will also likely not be officially certified for weeks, due to the state’s notoriously slow vote count. The Secretary of State’s office did not affirm the results of the 2024 presidential race until that December (SacBee). In the Los Angeles mayoral race: Mayor Karen Bass and challenger Spencer Pratt held the top two spots in early returns Tuesday in the Los Angeles mayoral primary, with Pratt opening a sizable lead over Councilmember Nithya Raman in the race for a potential November runoff berth. As of 8:48 pm, following the Los Angeles County Registrar’s second release of election results, Bass held 36.54% of the vote, followed by Pratt with around 30.12%. Nithya Raman was in third with 20.18%, followed by Adam Miller with 4.40% (Daily News). Wall Street Journal highlights the erosion of trust that comes from California’s election month: This absentee-ballot-counting process benefits Democrats, but it also can fuel public distrust in elections. Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom said as much last month in a letter urging election officials to expedite vote counting. “The longer the voting count takes, the more mis- and disinformation spreads,” he wrote. “Time is of the essence in preventing election lies from taking hold.” He’s right. Time is also of the essence for candidates who need to know if they can get on with the transition to holding office, or seek a new line of work. Why not require that ballots be returned by Election Day? (Wall Street Journal).

For conservative readers of Daybreak, that’s not exactly breaking news. But the very fact that Steve Hilton in the governor’s race and Spencer Pratt in the Los Angeles mayoral contest have been competitive illustrates that voters in deep blue California are less than pleased with the status quo. The news is that the Los Angeles Times has felt the need to report it. Jenny Jarvie: “There’s a clear sense of frustration with the Democratic Party,” said Sara Sadhwani, a professor of politics at Pomona College. The reason a wave of conservative outsiders like Pratt and Hilton are doing so well in such a solidly liberal city and state, Sadhwani said, is that they’re more willing to spell out the challenges that L.A. and California face. “Democrats tend to be very concerned about not upsetting one coalition or another, so it’s politics as usual with many of the Democratic candidates,” Sadhwani said. “Spencer Pratt has blown a hole in that by just naming the problems that everyday residents and voters are seeing and feeling on the ground.” On homelessness, many Angelenos are frustrated Bass hasn’t significantly moved the needle. “We can point to facts and figures that might suggest that things have changed,” Sadhwani said. “But when you walk down the streets of Los Angeles, it doesn’t feel like it, so she hasn’t passed the field test. That’s the problem.” … Whichever candidates make it to the runoff, the California Democratic Party will face questions about its strategy and vision. Less than two months ago, the party chair had urged Becerra to drop out of the race to make way for Swalwell. “Clearly, the party itself has lost its way in California,” Sadhwani said. “I would not be surprised if the California Democratic Party looks for new leadership after this election” (Los Angeles Times).

In other primary news:

New Jersey Democrats Nominate Candidate With Links to al Qaeda

Adam Hamawy in the race for New Jersey’s 12^th Congressional seat. He just defeated his nearest opponent by over 10 percentage points: 28 percent for Hamawy, 16 percent for Brad Cohen (Decision Desk). Ed Morrissey reminds us of Hamawy’s associations: He assisted the “Blind Sheikh,” Omar Abdel-Rahman, both before and after the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, for which Abdel-Rahman was tried and convicted for terrorism and seditious conspiracy. Even Politico noted three weeks ago that Hamawy “had a real yearslong association” with Abdel-Rahman, as established at trial. Hamawy shrugged it off as “guilt-by-association attacks on Muslim and Arab candidates.” It turns out that Hamawy has some other associations that are just as problematic. Jewish Insider dug up Hamawy’s volunteer work in Bosnia as related by Hamawy himself to the Newark Star-Ledger in 1996. He worked with the “Benevolence International Foundation,” a non-profit that later got exposed as a front for al-Qaeda, which provided financial support for Osama bin Laden (Hot Air). Mike Lawler: How in the hell has a defense witness in the 1993 WTC bombing, with ties to Al-Qaeda been nominated by the Democrats to serve in Congress? If elected in November, Congress should fully investigate his ties to terrorist organizations and determine whether he is fit to serve (Lawler).
Tuesday’s primary elections in New Jersey and Iowa set the stage for several competitive contests this fall that could determine control of the House and Senate.

While high-profile gubernatorial and mayoral contests in California grabbed much of the headlines, races in the Garden and Hawkeye states revealed emerging political trends that could shape the midterm elections.

Here are four key takeaways:

Last minute Trump-backed Rep. Randy Feenstra conceded the Iowa Republican gubernatorial primary to businessman Zach Lahn, marking a rare endorsement defeat for the president.

Feenstra (R-Iowa) was only endorsed by Trump on Friday, well after early voting began in Iowa in the middle of last month.

Lahn, who will take on Democratic state auditor Rob Sand in the general election, was ahead of Feenstra by less than a percentage point when the congressman conceded.

Establishment Dem wins Iowa Senate primary

The race for Iowa’s open Senate seat got more competitive after state Rep. Josh Turek took down lefty foe Zach Wahls in the Democratic primary.

Turek, a former wheelchair basketball Paralympian, has excited the establishment wing of the Democratic Party and will face Trump-backed GOP Rep. Ashley Hinson in November.

The nonpartisan Cook Political Report shifted the general election race from “likely” to “lean” Republican in response to Turek’s victory.

Another Squad-backed Dem appears to be heading to Congress

Al Qaeda linked Adam Hamawy, an Egypt-born former combat surgeon endorsed by “Squad” Reps. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), and Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), as well as socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), were the top vote-getters in the crowded Democratic primary race for the Garden State’s deep-blue 12th Congressional District.

Hamawy will be heavily favored in November against the Republican primary winner Gregg Mele.

Hamawy’s victory comes weeks after self-styled Democratic socialist state Rep. Chris Rabb won Pennsylvania’s 3rd District Democratic primary after receiving endorsements from far-left “Squad” lawmakers.

Rabb, like Hamawy, is virtually assured to win his general election race.

Kean wins GOP primary — but stays hidden on election night

Rep. Tom Kean (R-NJ), who hasn’t been seen since March, vowed to be transparent about his medical woes ahead of his GOP primary win in an uncontested race – but not on election night.

“Right now I am focused on my recovery and under the advice of healthcare professionals, I will transition from virtual work to in person work within a matter of weeks,” the congressman said in a statement.

“At that time I will be completely transparent as to the nature of my medical condition,” he teased.

What do you think? Post a comment.

In November, Kean will face off against Democrat Rebecca Bennett, who won her 7th District primary race convincingly.

The race is rated a “toss-up” by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.