2018 California State Senate election


The 2018 California State Senate elections were held on Tuesday, November 6, 2018, with the primary election being held on June 5, 2018. Voters in the California [State Senate districts|20 even-numbered districts] of the California State Senate elected their representatives. The elections coincided with the elections of other offices, including for governor and the California State Assembly.
The Democratic Party gained three seats: the 12th State Senate district|12th], 14th State Senate district|14th], and 34th State Senate district|34th] districts. These victories provided the Democrats with 29 seats and restored the two-thirds supermajority that they lost after the recall of Democratic state senator Josh Newman in June 2018.

District 2

The 2nd district stretches along the North Coast from the Oregon border in the north to the San Francisco Bay Area in the south. It includes all of Del Norte County, Humboldt County, Lake County, Marin County, Mendocino County, and Trinity County, as well as a majority of Sonoma County. The incumbent was Democrat Mike McGuire, who was elected with 70.0% of the vote in 2014.

Candidates

District 4

The 4th district encompasses the Sacramento Valley, mainly taking in rural farmland as well as Chico, and the Sacramento metropolitan area, including Carmichael, and parts of Rancho Cordova. The incumbent was Republican Jim Nielsen, who was reelected with 63.7% of the vote in 2014.

Candidates

District 6

The 6th district is located in the core of the Sacramento metropolitan area, including the state capital of Sacramento and surrounding suburbs. The incumbent was Democrat Richard Pan, who was elected with 53.8% of the vote in 2014.

Candidates

  • Janine DeRose
  • Eric Frame, activist
  • Jacob Mason, factory worker
  • Richard Pan, incumbent state senator

District 8

The 8th district stretches from the Sacramento suburbs to Death Valley. It encompasses most of the southern Sierra Nevada, Gold Country, and parts of the Central Valley, including parts of Fresno, Clovis, and Turlock. The incumbent was Republican Tom Berryhill, who was term-limited and could not run for reelection.

Candidates

District 10

The 10th district is located in the southern coastal East Bay and parts of Silicon Valley, including Hayward and Milpitas. The incumbent was Democrat Bob Wieckowski, who was elected with 68.0% of the vote in 2014.

Candidates

  • Victor G. San Vicente, real estate and mortgage broker
  • Ali Sarsack, military veteran and design engineer
  • Bob Wieckowski, incumbent state senator

District 12

The 12th district takes in the Salinas Valley and a swath of the Central Valley between Modesto and Fresno. The incumbent was Republican Anthony Cannella, who was term-limited and could not run for reelection.

Candidates

District 14

The 14th district takes in parts of the southern Central Valley. It takes in heavily Latino portions of Fresno and Bakersfield, along with Delano, Hanford, and Porterville. The incumbent was Republican Andy Vidak, who was reelected with 54.1% of the vote in 2014.

Candidates

District 16

The 16th district consists of the southeastern Central Valley and the High Desert. Much of the population is in the western parts of the district in the Central Valley, anchored by Bakersfield and Visalia, while the desert regions in the eastern half consist of scattered settlements, such as Barstow and Yucca Valley. The incumbent was Republican minority Senate leader Jean Fuller, who was term-limited and could not run for reelection.

Candidates

District 18

The 18th district consists of the eastern San Fernando Valley, including parts of Burbank, as well as the Los Angeles neighborhoods of Northridge, Sherman Oaks, and Van Nuys. The incumbent was Democrat Robert Hertzberg, who was elected with 70.2% of the vote in 2014.

Candidates

  • Robert Hertzberg, incumbent state senator
  • Rudy Melendez
  • Brandon Saario
  • Roger James Sayegh

District 20

The 20th district encompasses parts of the Inland Empire, including Chino, Fontana, Ontario, and parts of San Bernardino. The incumbent was Democrat Connie Leyva, who was elected with 62.4% of the vote in 2014.

Candidates

District 22

The 22nd district is located in the southern coastal encompasses the San Gabriel Valley and parts of the foothills. The incumbent was Democrat Ed Hernandez, who was term-limited and could not run for reelection.

Candidates

District 24

The 24th district encompasses central Los Angeles and its immediate environs, including East Los Angeles, Eagle Rock, and Koreatown. The incumbent was Democratic State Senate President pro tempore Kevin de León, who was term-limited and could not run for reelection.

Candidates

District 26

The 26th district is centered around the South Bay and Westside regions. The incumbent was Democrat Ben Allen, who was elected with 60.3% of the vote in 2014.

Candidates

District 28

The 28th district is located in eastern Riverside County, including Cathedral City, Murrieta, Palm Springs, and Temecula. The incumbent was Republican Jeff Stone, who was elected with 53.0% of the vote in 2014.

Candidates

District 30

The 30th district is located in Los Angeles County including Culver City, Ladera Heights, Westmont and the Los Angeles neighborhoods of Crenshaw, Downtown, and Florence. The incumbent was Democrat Holly Mitchell, who was reelected with 68.8% of the vote in 2014.

Candidates

District 32

The 32nd district takes in the Gateway Cities region in southeastern Los Angeles County, as well as Buena Park. The incumbent was Democrat Tony Mendoza, who was elected with 52.3% of the vote in 2014, resigned following sexual assault allegations. However, he decided to run for election again following his resignation.
Note that the primary was held the same day as the special election to fill a vacancy in the seat. Although most of the candidates in the two contests were the same, the results were very different. Rita Topalian finished first in both races, but different candidates finished in second place. Vanessa Delgado finished in second place in the special election, but third place in the regularly scheduled primary election. She received a similar number of votes in both races, but candidate Bob Archuleta received about 54% more votes in the regularly scheduled election than he did in the special election. The different results have been attributed to the different order in which the candidates were listed on the ballot.

Candidates

District 34

The 34th district is centered around western Orange County, including parts of Anaheim, as well as Garden Grove and Santa Ana. The district also takes in coastal areas, including parts of Huntington Beach and Long Beach. The incumbent was Republican Janet Nguyen, who was elected with 58.1% of the vote in 2014.

Candidates

Results

General election results by county. Blue represents counties won by Umberg. Red represents counties won by Nguyen.

District 36

The 36th district encompasses southern Orange County and the North County region of San Diego County. The incumbent was Republican Patricia Bates, who was elected with 65.7% of the vote in 2014.

Candidates

  • Patricia Bates, incumbent state senator
  • Marggie Castellano, businesswoman

District 38

The 38th district encompasses the East County and inland region of San Diego County. The incumbent was Republican Joel Anderson, who was term-limited and could not run for reelection.

Candidates

District 40

The 40th district runs along the entire border between California and Mexico, taking in rural Imperial County as well as the South Bay region of San Diego County. The incumbent was Democrat Ben Hueso, who was reelected with 54.9% of the vote in 2014.

Candidates