The ballot count is barely two-thirds complete, but that didn’t stop President Trump from jumping in to stir controversy and challenge the outcome, prompting multiple U.S. Department of Justice investigations in Los Angeles.

The June 4 totals, with an estimated 60% of the ballot counted, offered no mathematical or statistical reason to believe that third-place candidate Tom Steyer will be on the November runoff ballot.

As the counting progressed, the Becerra-Hilton battle settled into a steady pattern, as the pair widened their gap over Tom Steyer to nearly 300,000 votes.

Wednesday morning it seemed very likely that Hilton would be Becerra’s November rival, and just as likely that the former congressman, attorney general and Biden administration cabinet member would succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom.

The independent Emerson College poll of likely voters showed that Becerra, who was among the also-rans at 4% in early April, is now clearly leading the race for governor at 28%.

Billionaires, Big Oil and other interests spent big to influence the California governor’s race. Here are five key takeaways: Outside money shatters records. Mahan fizzles out. Steyer personal spending breaks records. Swalwell donors flock to Becerra. Republican Steve Hilton has the most donors.

Democrat Tom Steyer faded and candidates Chad Bianco, Katie Porter and Matt Mahan were left in the dust in what the California Democratic Party called its final tracking poll from the California VOTER Index.

Polls released earlier this week showed some separation of three candidates – Democrats Xavier Becerra and Tom Steyer and Republican Steve Hilton – from the others, and the trio were on the receiving end of most of the barbs at the May 14 debate. 

The debate comes at a pivotal moment in the top-two primary campaign – as mail ballots are returned and new polls show the number of undecided voters are dwindling with less than three weeks until the official June 2 Election Day.

San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, who was still polling at single digits last week, was spared most of the vitriol, but didn’t hesitate to criticize each of the other candidates at every opportunity.
His favorite debate target was Democratic frontrunner Xavier Becerra.

Primary ballots are in the mail to nearly 23 million registered California voters and the most recent statewide poll shows that 27 percent of the electorate are still undecided.

The statewide debate was more rough-and-tumble than last Wednesday’s event in San Francisco, but again, no governor candidate broke away from the scrum, and the playing field just got muddier.

The first major poll since last Wednesday’s Inside California Politics governor’s debate released today showed the April 22 debate had little impact on the public’s assessment of the top candidates.

San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan – still polling in single digits – has approximately $8.9 million on hand to spend in the gubernatorial primary campaign's home stretch, more than double any other candidate.

Scorecards for the two Republican and four Democratic candidates each showed a few strikes, some hits, but no home runs.

The Emerson College poll released last week, based on April 14-15 interviews, showed the biggest boost for Xavier Becerra, in contrast to the Mahan-sponsored poll released this week, based on April 8-12 interviews.