Ex-UK political aide Steve Hilton loses bid for California governor to Democrat

What the report says

Steve Hilton, the former UK political aide and adviser to David Cameron, has lost the California governor’s race to Democrat Xavier Becerra, according to BBC World News. Hilton, who was backed by President Donald Trump, was a Republican challenger in a state that has leaned strongly Democratic, and the result was projected soon after polls closed.

Becerra, a former congressman from Los Angeles and former state attorney general who later served as health and human services secretary under President Joe Biden, is set to become California’s first Latino governor in more than 150 years. He will replace term-limited Governor Gavin Newsom. BBC reporting said the campaign centered on issues including affordability, housing, energy policy and the state’s relationship with the federal government.

Hilton presented himself as an outsider seeking to improve what he described as a state facing bureaucracy and economic strain. Becerra, meanwhile, framed his victory as a response to recent political and economic challenges, telling supporters in Sacramento that Democrats had prevailed after a hard-fought campaign.

The race had narrowed after Congressman Eric Swalwell dropped out amid sexual assault allegations, which he denied, and Becerra and Hilton emerged as the leading candidates in the June primary. The outcome adds to a broader night of Democratic gains in the US midterms, underscoring the party’s strength in California and the difficulty Republicans face there.