Who is leading the race for governor?

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California voters on Tuesday will choose two gubernatorial candidates for the November election in the tightest gubernatorial race in years, ending a long and winding primary campaign in which Democrats have struggled to elect a new leader of the nation’s most populous Democratic state.

The decision comes at a particularly important time for California. Residents face an exorbitant cost of living, the nation’s highest gasoline prices compounded by the Iran war, wildfire risks that have driven insurance companies out of the state, a shaky state budget, looming federal cuts to the state’s sprawling health care system and an economy weakened by immigration crackdowns.

Former Democratic Attorney General Xavier Becerra, who has vowed to fight Trump and freeze insurance and utility rates, leads in Democratic polls and has the support of much of the state’s party leadership. In the run-up to the November election, he appeared to be among the favorites to win one of the top two seats.

Republican Steve Hilton, a former Fox News anchor backed by Donald Trump, who has promised to cut income taxes and drastically reducing environmental regulations was running second in polls before Election Day after consolidating the support of many of the state’s conservatives.

But billionaire climate activist Tom Steyer, a progressive Democrat who self-financed his campaign with $213 million, was still in contention for one of the top spots. A series of polls released in the final days of the race showed Becerra leading by about a quarter of likely voter support, while Steyer and Hilton were in a tight battle for second place.

Counting votes can take days or weeks . Pollsters and strategists said the lingering uncertainty surrounding the Democrats has caused some voters to wait to support whoever appears to be ahead.

“These polls can become a self-fulfilling prophecy,” said Paul Mitchell, a Democratic strategist whose firm tracks data from the vote.

The race to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom, who will leave office at the end of the year due to term limits, was Tuesday’s top choice. Democrats are considered all but certain to win in November, with nearly twice as many registered voters as Republicans, and it matters nationally to the Democratic Party’s opposition to the Trump administration.

It was also one of the most unusually open races in recent state history.

There is no Democratic star in the race

Unlike decades of California politics dominated by movie stars, family dynasties and flashy personalities, none of the Democratic Party’s biggest names entered the race.

This generated a host of candidates from the left, briefly causing panic among liberals that Hilton and another Republican, The flamboyant Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco received more votes than any Democrat, leaving the party out of the general election. The state Democratic Party launched a public pressure campaign asking the candidates with the fewest votes to withdraw. Almost everyone stayed in the race.

But when then-Democratic Rep. Eric Swawell retired after multiple sexual assault allegations, Becerra was the obvious beneficiary. recruiting many of Swalwell’s donors and supporters . It’s been that way ever since went up , has successfully avoided criticism of his record . Steyer, who spent $200 million to boost his public profile through advertising campaigns, has consolidated much of the party’s left wing. Former Congresswoman Katie Porter, Progressive plagued by accusations of her temperament was abandoned. San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, a moderate backed by Silicon Valley billionaires, rose from single digits in the polls, but not by enough.

Trump’s endorsement of Hilton allowed him to quickly distance himself from Bianco, making it unlikely that both Republicans would finish in first and second place. If Hilton advances to the November election, his chances of being elected over a Democrat are slim.

Both he and Steyer have devoted the last weeks of the campaign to casting Becerra as a symbol of the status quo and themselves as agents of systemic change amid multiple state crises, with affordability a central issue in the race.

For Hilton, that would mean ending 16 years of “one-party rule” under Democrats, cutting spending and rolling back many liberal policies, such as mandates to cut greenhouse gases, the progressive tax system and parts of the social safety net.

“After 16 years of going in the same direction, a lot of people are unhappy,” he said last week. “For anyone who wants change or balance in our politics, the only option is me.”

His popularity as a former Fox anchor helped him launch the campaign with an established fan base. Nancy LeVesque, a retired saleswoman from Roseville, already raved about him and said he was an obvious choice when she voted at a Placer County polling place Monday. He liked that he brought an outside perspective to governance and a change for those who were leaving California because of its liberal ideology.

“We lost a lot of good people” who went to other states, he said.

Steyer cast himself as a populist “class traitor” who would force Californians to cut costs by taking on powerful economic interests such as private utilities, real estate and health insurers. He made numerous progressive promises on climate change, universal health system and increasing taxes on the wealthy.

Undecided voter Tina Varnado attended a rally in support of Steyer last week organized by her union, which represents home care aides. The south Sacramento resident is a full-time caregiver for her elderly mother and elderly daughter, who recently underwent open-heart surgery. Between her mother’s Social Security pension and her salary as her daughter’s health aide, “we have to spend everything we have every month” to get by, she said.

“Everything you said touched my heart,” he said after listening to Steyer. “If we can get the prices down, maybe we can start saving for a house for my future.”

Becerra emphasized his extensive experience in government, including his lawsuits against the first Trump administration and his time as secretary of Health and Human Services during the pandemic.

That convinced Evan Cragin of the California Young Democrats, who had endorsed Becerra weeks before his sudden elevation. Cragin said he wants the next governor to have the experience to govern to stand up to federal “abuses” of the Trump administration.

“Minister Becerra has done it before,” Cragin said.

Surrounded by supporters at the offices of Planned Parenthood’s California affiliates on Monday, Becerra dismissed his opponents’ promises, pointing to past accomplishments such as passing the Affordable Care Act and supporting the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) immigration program.

“You can make all these big, exaggerated promises,” he said. “But it’s not easy to get things done.”

Ryan Sabalow contributed to this report.