Republican Steve Hilton will advance to the November election in California’s gubernatorial race, according to CNN’s Decision Desk. Hilton, a former Fox News host who has President Donald Trump’s endorsement, will face former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, a Democrat.

Primary Election Results

Hilton and Becerra were among a crowded field of contenders in Tuesday’s primary election who vied to succeed term-limited incumbent Gov. Gavin Newsom. Billionaire Democratic candidate Tom Steyer, who spent more than $200 million on his gubernatorial campaign, will finish in third place.

Concern had grown among Democrats that their scattered field of candidates could split the vote enough for Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, another Republican in the primary, to be the top two vote-getters in the contest. However, Trump’s endorsement of Hilton in April helped consolidate GOP support.

Hilton’s Campaign Focus

Hilton focused his campaign on affordability issues, blaming Democratic leadership in California for high costs and vowing to reduce bureaucracy in the state. He has argued that California voters are ready for a change after 16 years of unified Democratic party control.

Hilton now faces a steep uphill climb in November’s election. There are roughly 4.6 million more registered Democrats than there are Republicans in California, according to the state’s most recent voter registration statistics. California hasn’t elected a Republican governor in 20 years, when voters gave Arnold Schwarzenegger a second term.

Becerra, who previously served as a Los Angeles-area US congressman and California attorney general, ran on his years of experience in various governmental roles and argued that only someone who had managed crises could fix California’s problems.

Original reporting: KEYT (Ventura/Santa Barbara) — read the source article.