Hours left in high-stakes California primary elections

Added: 2026-06-02

[00:00:00]Everybody, it's election week in California, where polls open in just over 24 hours for two of the most consequential elections in the country.

[00:00:08]Republicans are making a play for both the governor's mansion and the Los Angeles mayor's office, positions long dominated by Democrats. NewsNation Washington correspondent Trevor Shirley is live for us outside the White House.

[00:00:19]And Trevor, with just hours left in these high-stakes races, the big story here isn't just who's leading, it's a whole the infighting, too.

[00:00:30]>> Hey there, good morning. That's exactly right. With early voting already underway, both parties are now starting to show some signs of internal panic.

[00:00:38]The latest Decision Desk HQ polling average showing Democrat Xavier Becerra and Republican Steve Hilton virtually tied at the top of that list with Democrat Tom Steyer and Republican Chad Bianco still in the mix. And keep in mind, under California's jungle primary system, only the top two candidates advance. That has both parties worried about splitting their own vote. Right now, Hilton is publicly urging fellow Republican Bianco to drop out, arguing that at this point conservatives need to unite behind one candidate.

[00:01:12]>> I know that many Republicans were holding onto the hope that we might have two Republicans in the top two, myself and Chad, and then we guaranteed change in California.

[00:01:22]But if that was ever possible, it's certainly not possible today.

[00:01:28]>> Democrats are also fighting internally as well. Becerra threatening Steyer with legal action over a campaign ad that claims Becerra could be indicted, which the ad says could potentially result in him being removed from the race, essentially handing the race to Steve Hilton. For his part, Steyer says he is not going to be taking that ad down.

[00:01:48]That's all connected to a corruption case involving Becerra's former chief of staff. But already, federal prosecutors have said Becerra was a victim in that case, Anna.

[00:01:58]>> All right, and and Trevor, also this morning, other there's another major race that we're following in California for LA mayor.

[00:02:06]The dark horse candidate, Spencer Pratt, surging late in this cycle. Does he have a legitimate shot here?

[00:02:13]>> At this point, the short answer is yes.

[00:02:15]The latest Decision Desk HQ polling showing him in second place behind incumbent mayor and former congresswoman Karen Bass, but ahead of city council member Nithya Raman. Keep in mind, Pratt has focused almost his entire campaign on issues like affordability, homelessness, and the city's response to last year's devastating wildfires. He said repeatedly that his campaign is about local issues, and he's really refrained from weighing in on national politics, even as his campaign keeps drawing more national attention. Keep in mind, President Trump recently said he wants to see Pratt do well, saying he heard Pratt is a quote "big MAGA person." But so far, Pratt has stopped short of saying that he wanted the president's endorsement during a recent interview with NBC.

[00:03:02]>> I don't need anyone's endorsement but mothers. That's who's getting me elected. People keep forgetting it's Democratic moms that do not feel safe that are putting me in office.

[00:03:14]>> And the back-and-forth continued over the weekend when current front-runner Mayor Karen Bass, a Democrat, appeared to liken Pratt to President Trump. She said, quote, "You have a failed reality TV star who wants to be famous. We know what it means if you put someone who is a reality TV star in a seat of power, Anna."

[00:03:32]>> Yeah, long been a a deep blue state, but with gas and rent and health care and electricity costs the way that they are in California, uh you can see how there have been some surges in the polls there. Trevor, surely great to see you.

[00:03:44]Thank you.

[00:03:45]>> Thank you for watching. Subscribe below and download our NewsNation app right now on your phone, and you will get fact-based, unbiased news for all Americans.