Democrat Xavier Becerra is projected to win the California governor's race over Republican Steve Hilton, ABC7 reported on election night. Becerra would become the state's first elected Latino governor.

The Associated Press is tracking results from local election officials statewide. The AP declares winners when it determines trailing candidates no longer have a path to victory. As of publication, the AP results page did not include specific vote totals or percentages available for this report.

Polls closed at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3. As we reported Nov. 1, Pasadena had 15 vote centers open for in-person voting. Los Angeles County vote centers were also available for voter registration and ballot drop-off, according to the LA County Registrar-Recorder.

The California Secretary of State's office began posting returns at electionresults.sos.ca.gov after polls closed, according to the state's election results page. Results will be updated in the days that follow as counties process remaining ballots. Official certified results are due by Dec. 11.

The candidates

Becerra, 67, served as California's attorney general starting in 2016 and later as U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services under former President Joe Biden, according to KTVU. He previously served a dozen terms in Congress. His campaign priorities include health care, affordable housing, disaster preparedness and opposing the Trump administration.

Hilton, a former Fox News host and adviser to British Prime Minister David Cameron, has never held elected office, KTVU reported. He has pledged to lower gas prices to $3 per gallon, cut utility bills, eliminate state income taxes on earnings under $150,000 and abolish the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). President Donald Trump has endorsed Hilton.

The two debated once, in September, according to CalMatters. Becerra linked Hilton to Trump, while Hilton accused Becerra of dodging the state's problems.

Where the polls stood

Becerra entered Election Day with a wide lead in multiple surveys. A UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll co-sponsored by the Los Angeles Times, published Oct. 30, showed Becerra at 61% among likely voters compared with 34% for Hilton. That poll surveyed 1,477 likely voters and carried a margin of error of 3 percentage points.

IGS Poll Director Mark DiCamillo told the Times: "He's solidified almost unanimous support now among Democrats. Republicans are almost unanimous in the other direction."

A Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) survey released Oct. 27 found a similar split: 61% for Becerra and 37% for Hilton among likely voters, KCRA reported. That survey of 1,728 California adults had a margin of error of 3.8 percentage points for likely voters.

Democrats outnumber Republicans roughly two-to-one among California's registered voters, according to KTVU. About 45% of voters are registered as Democrats and 25% as Republicans, with the rest unaffiliated or registered with other parties.

What else is on the ballot

The governor's race shares the ballot with 14 statewide propositions, CalMatters reported. Voters also decided U.S. House races.

Becerra replaces termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom and becomes the first Latino elected governor of California, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Counties will continue counting ballots postmarked by Nov. 3 that arrive by Nov. 10. The governor's office warned before the election that under U.S. Postal Service changes, mail dropped off more than 50 miles from a regional hub is collected the next day.