Xavier Becerra, a Democrat, was elected governor of California on Tuesday, defeating Republican Steve Hilton for the seat Gavin Newsom is leaving. The win extends Democrats' 16-year hold on the office, and Becerra becomes the first Latino to serve as governor in a century and a half and the first ever elected to the job, CalMatters reported.

The race was decided shortly after polls closed at 8 p.m. Pacific.

Counting continues. California's results stay unofficial until counties finish their canvass and the secretary of state certifies them.

Becerra and Hilton

Steve Hilton in a dark suit speaking into a microphone on a stage with a cactus decoration
Steve Hilton speaks at a conference in Salt Lake City in June 2023.Gage Skidmore / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 2.0

Becerra represented Los Angeles in Congress for years, then served as California's attorney general during Trump's first term and became U.S. secretary of health and human services in 2021.

Hilton, a British American businessman who once advised former British Prime Minister David Cameron, ran with President Trump's endorsement on a platform of cutting regulation. He raised more than $33 million, against about $38 million for Becerra, by CalMatters' count.

The budget waiting in Sacramento

The white domed California State Capitol in Sacramento behind palm trees and gardens
The California State Capitol in Sacramento, where Becerra must send his first budget in January.Christopher Padalinski / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0

Becerra takes office in January. Days after the inauguration, he has to send lawmakers a new state budget, and the Legislature's budget analyst, Gabe Petek, has warned of a $29 billion "wall of debt," columnist Dan Walters wrote in CalMatters.