With 61 candidates for governor on the ballot — the most since the 2003 recall election when there were 135 — voters this June seemed to know more what they didn’t like than what they did. In Santa Barbara County, turnout thus far — some ballots still have yet to be counted — was just 26.8 percent. That’s down 13 points from four years ago, the last June primary with a governor’s race atop the ticket.
In Santa Barbara County, where being a billionaire isn’t held against you, reformed billionaire and climate change crusader Tom Steyer placed first with 28 percent of the votes cast, Republican Steve Hilton (Donald Trump’s pick) placed second with 25.5 percent, and Xavier Becerra — the personification of the Democratic status quo with 37 years in the electoral trenches — placed third.
Statewide, Steyer appears to be placing a distant third, but with half the state ballots still uncounted, it remains within the realm of mathematic possibility for him to close that gap. Still, it’s an uphill climb. Steyer has blamed the Big Money campaign — $78 million at last count — led by the likes of Chevron, the big utility companies, and large corporate interests to blow him out of the race. For the moment, Steve Hilton, the MAGA-red Republican candidate endorsed by Donald Trump, appears to be the top vote-getter for the top spot in the bluest state of the nation. (Even in Santa Barbara, Hilton placed a solid second.)