Whitesides’ lead increases over incumbent in 27th District

George Whitesides, a Democrat attempting to unseat incumbent Rep. Mike Garcia, increased his lead in a northern Los Angeles County congressional race the by 4,730 votes, according to the latest election results released Sunday afternoon.

Whitesides more than doubled his lead over Garcia, R-Santa Clarita, but the race is still very close — 50.9%-49.1%, or 140,661-135,931 votes — to represent the 27th Congressional District located in the Santa Clarita and Antelope valleys.

Whitesides, a former NASA chief of staff, was ahead by 2,114 votes on Saturday after trailing Garcia by 973 votes Friday, 3,240 Thursday and 4,767 Wednesday, according to the Los Angeles County Registrar/Recorder.

“Every vote in this race needs to be counted, and I’m looking forward to seeing tomorrow’s update,” Whitesides posted Sunday on social media.

On Friday, Garcia said in a statement, “It is essential that every vote cast by the people of our district is thoroughly and accurately counted. While we await the final results, variations in daily vote totals are to be expected as the process continues.

“I am confident that when all votes are in, our message of economic security, safe neighborhoods and protecting critical programs like Social Security and Medicare will have resonated with CA-27 families,” Garcia said.

In the 47th Congressional District, which is located entirely in Orange County, state Sen. Dave Min, D-Irvine, had a lead over Republican Scott Baugh by 2,713 votes. As of Saturday, the latest results available from the Orange County Registrar of Voters, Min had 151,254 votes versus Baugh’s 148,541, or 50.5%-49.5%.

Min had a 1,078-vote lead when vote counting concluded Friday. He trailed by 616 votes Thursday and 1,133 Wednesday.

Rep. Katie Porter, D-Irvine, gave up the District 47 seat for what turned out to be an unsuccessful run for the U.S. Senate. Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Burbank, defeated former Major League Baseball player Steve Garvey to claim the Senate office held by the late Diane Feinstein.

In an X post Saturday, Min said he is “feeling good about our momentum.”

Baugh has not commented on social media since before the polls closed Tuesday.

In the 45th District, Rep. Michelle Steel’s lead over Democrat Derek Tran dropped 6,128 votes for a total of 138,573-132,445, or 51.1-48.9%. The Cypress Republican led by 6,901 votes Saturday and 7,590 Friday.

Only ballots from LA County voting precincts in the district were processed Sunday. Vote counting resumes Monday in Orange County.

The 45th District is in Orange and LA counties and includes all or parts of Garden Grove, Westminster, Cerritos, Fountain Valley, Buena Park, Fullerton, Placentia and Brea.

No votes were counted Sunday for Southern California’s two other narrow races for Congress.

In the 49th District, Rep. Mike Levin, D-Dana Point, leads Republican challenger Matt Gunderson 167,787-156,630 for an 11,157-vote cushion or 51.7%-48.3%.

Gunderson has the lead in OC, but Levin is ahead in San Diego County.

The district currently includes the northern coastal sections of San Diego County, including Oceanside, Vista, Carlsbad, Encinitas, Solana Beach and parts of Del Mar. Southern Orange County locations include San Clemente, Dana Point, San Juan Capistrano, Ladera Ranch, Laguna Niguel and Coto de Caza. Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton also is in the district.

Rep. Ken Calvert, R-Corona, had 7,880-vote lead over Democrat Will Rollins. Calvert is seeking a 17th term representing the 41st District in Riverside County.

The tally Saturday was 143,621 votes for Calvert and 135,741 for Rollins, or 51.4%-48.6%.

It was unclear the number of ballots that have yet to be counted in the congressional races.

The OC Registrar of Voters estimated 212,152 ballots were left to be processed countywide.

Updated Nov. 11, 2024, 10:31 a.m.