Here are the morning’s top stories on Tuesday, June 2, 2026
- It’s election day. And California’s first truly open governor’s race in decades has sparked a lot of speculation, including early fears that the state’s top-two primary system could leave Democrats shut out of the general election entirely. But that scenario is looking far less likely.
- About 150 immigrants detained at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center are on their 11th day of a hunger strike. Members of Congress toured the facility Monday to seek answers.
- Authorities say a months-long investigation into a Fresno County gang network has disrupted organized criminal activity throughout the Central Valley and led to dozens of arrests.
Election day is here. From governor to LA mayor, these are the races to watch
Election Day is finally here in California, and ballots are due in drop boxes or at polling locations by 8 p.m.
The race to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom has loomed large in media coverage and political advertisements. This is California’s first truly open governor’s race in more than two decades, and it has remained unsettled to the end. Polls now show three candidates likely competing for the two spots in the November general election: Democratic former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, Republican businessman and former Fox News host Steve Hilton, and billionaire Democratic activist Tom Steyer.
If Becerra secures one of the top spots, as the latest polling suggests, it would cap one of the most surprising and dramatic comebacks in recent state political history. As recently as April, polls were showing Becerra — also a former member of Congress and California attorney general — languishing in single digits in a crowded field. But Becerra’s campaign was boosted after former Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell dropped out of the race and resigned from Congress following multiple accusations of sexual assault and harassment. Shortly after Swalwell’s exit, Becerra began rising in the polls, outpacing most of his Democratic rivals.
President Donald Trump also endorsed Hilton in April, propelling him to the top of the field alongside Becerra. But neither has cracked more than 25% support in most public polls — and Steyer, who’s spent more than $213 million of his own fortune in the race, remains within striking distance of the top two in recent surveys. That state of play helped quell fears among Democrats that a crowded field without a superstar candidate could result in two Republicans moving on to the general election, locking out Democrats entirely.
