2024 election results: Whitesides overtakes Garcia in Saturday’s update of LA County’s closest races
For the first time since election night on Nov. 5, Democrat George Whitesides has pulled ahead of Republican Rep. Mike Garcia in the highly competitive U.S. House race for California's 27th Congressional District seat.
Whitesides had 50.4% of the vote while Garcia had 49.6%, with 2,114 votes separating the two, based on the latest vote count issued by the L.A. County registrar's office on Saturday, Nov. 9. The next update is scheduled for late Sunday afternoon.
ee a chart of the latest vote counts
More than 3.3 million ballots have been counted in L.A. County. It's unclear how many ballots are left to be counted for individual races, but countywide an estimated 526,000 ballots still need to be processed. The registrar's office isn't expected to finish counting ballots for days and has until Dec. 3 to certify the results.
The high-stakes race between Garcia and Whitesides is being watched closely by political observers nationwide since the outcome could help determine which party controls the House. As of Saturday, Republicans had won 212 seats while Democrats claimed 201 seats with 22 more races to be decided. The party with at least 218 seats would have a majority in the House.
With Republican Donald Trump's win in the presidential election and Republicans' reclaiming control of the U.S. Senate in this election, Democrats are hoping to seize control of the House to act as a check against the GOP.
From the start, the race in Congressional District 27 was expected to be highly competitive and was rated a toss-up heading into Election Day.
The district represents parts of northern L.A. County, including the high desert communities of Lancaster, Palmdale and Santa Clarita.
Whitesides, a political newcomer and NASA's former chief of staff, had the early lead when the first set of results trickled in on election night. But Garcia pulled ahead when the second batch or results came in on that night and continued to maintain a slim lead until Saturday.
Once a conservative stronghold, the demographics of California's 27th Congressional District have shifted over the years, with more voters now registered as Democrats.
Just over 40% of voters in the district are registered Democrats compared to 30% who are registered Republicans. Another 21.5% are registered as "no party preference."
Besides the District 27 House race in L.A. County, a handful of other races impacting Los Angeles remained tight on Saturday.
Here are the latest numbers for these races.
State Senate: In District 35, Laura Richardson overtook Michelle Chambers on Saturday. Richardson had 50.85% of the vote while Chambers had 49.15% in this Democrat v. Democrat battle to replace termed-out state Sen. Steven Bradford. Richardson, of San Pedro, is a housing advocate and small business owner who previously served on the Long Beach City Council and in the state Assembly and U.S. House of Representatives. Chambers, who lives in Compton, is a community justice advocate. She previously served on the Compton City Council and was an aide to then-U.S. Rep. Janice Hahn. Senate District 35 represents residents in South L.A. County. It includes all or parts of Inglewood, Hawthorne, Compton, Carson and San Pedro.
State Assembly: In District 40, incumbent Democratic Assemblymember Pilar Schiavo extended her lead over Republican challenger Patrick Gipson, a former L.A. County sheriff's deputy. As of Saturday, she led with 52.02% to Gipson's 47.98%.Schiavo was first elected to the Assembly in 2022. Gipson, now retired from the county Sheriff's Department, previously worked as a lifeguard for both the city and county of Los Angeles. The winner will represent Santa Clarita Valley and northwestern San Fernando Valley.
LAUSD: In the race to represent District 3 constituents on the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education, incumbent Scott Schmerelson widened his lead ever so slightly over math teacher Daniel Chang between Friday and Saturday's count. As of Saturday, Schmerelson had 51.91% while Chang had 48.09%. The winner will represent District 3, which stretches from North Hollywood to Sherman Oaks, Van Nuys and most West San Fernando Valley communities. Schmerelson worked as a principal in L.A. Unified before retiring. He's been on the school board since 2015. Chang is a teacher at James Madison Middle School in North Hollywood.
Long Beach City College: The race for District 4 on the LBCC District's Board of Trustees remained razor thin, though Ennette Morton's lead grew a bit on Saturday. Morton, a college faculty administrator, had 50.79% of votes tallied so far while opponent Richard "Dick" Gaylord, a businessman and educator, had 49.21%. Morton's lead grew from 371 votes to 611.
Puente Hills Habitat: Measure PH, the bond measure that would boost the budget of the Puente Hills Habitat Preservation Authority, has been teetering above and below the threshold of the required two-thirds majority, or 66.67%, for passage. On Saturday, it had 67.4% approval. The measure, with its funding boost, would allow the Habitat Authority to protect the hills from wildfires, fight illegal dumping and hire more rangers.
Pasadena Unified School District: Measure EE, a Pasadena school district parcel tax to help fund programs and raise teachers' salaries, has been gradually edging above the threshold for approval. The measure on Saturday received 68.34% of the vote, surpassing the two-thirds majority, or 66.67%, required for passage.
