California Secretary of State election, 2022
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← 2018
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| California Secretary of State |
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| Top-two primary General election |
| Election details |
| Filing deadline: March 11, 2022 |
| Primary: June 7, 2022 General: November 8, 2022 Pre-election incumbent(s): Shirley Weber (Democratic) |
| How to vote |
| Poll times: 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Voting in California |
| Ballotpedia analysis |
| Federal and state primary competitiveness State executive elections in 2022 Impact of term limits in 2022 State government trifectas State government triplexes Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2022 |
| California executive elections |
| Governor Lieutenant Governor |
California held an election for secretary of state on November 8, 2022. The primary was scheduled for June 7, 2022. The filing deadline was March 11, 2022. This was one of 27 elections for secretary of state taking place in 2022. Click here for an overview of these races. All but three states have a secretary of state. Although the specific duties and powers of the office vary from state to state, secretaries of state are often responsible for the maintenance of voter rolls and for administering elections. Other common responsibilities include registering businesses, maintaining state records, and certifying official documents. At the time of the 2022 elections, there were 27 Republican secretaries of state and 20 Democratic secretaries of state.
A state government triplex refers to a situation where the governor, attorney general, and secretary of state are all members of the same political party. Heading into the 2022 elections, there were 23 Republican triplexes, 18 Democratic triplexes, and nine divided governments where neither party held triplex control.
Incumbent Shirley Weber won election in the general election for California Secretary of State.
For more information about the primaries in this election, click on the links below:
Candidates and election results
General election
General election for California Secretary of State
Incumbent Shirley Weber defeated Robert Bernosky in the general election for California Secretary of State on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Shirley Weber (D) | 60.1 | 6,462,164 | |
| Robert Bernosky (R) | 39.9 | 4,298,530 | ||
| Total votes: 10,760,694 | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for California Secretary of State
The following candidates ran in the primary for California Secretary of State on June 7, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Shirley Weber (D) | 58.9 | 4,016,798 | |
| ✔ | Robert Bernosky (R) | 18.8 | 1,281,587 | |
| Rachel Hamm (R) | 12.1 | 822,978 | ||
 | James Paine (R) | 3.7 | 254,222 | |
| Gary Blenner (G) | 3.0 | 205,630 | ||
| Raul Rodriguez Jr. (R) | 2.6 | 176,059 | |
| Matthew Cinquanta (Independent) | 0.9 | 59,481 | ||
| Desmond Silveira (No party preference) (Write-in) | 0.0 | 235 | ||
| Total votes: 6,816,990 | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Campaign finance
General election
Primary election
Voting information
- See also: Voting in California
Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses
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No candidate in this race has completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Ballotpedia is seeking 100 percent participation so voters can learn more about all the candidates on their ballots.
Past elections
2018
General election
General election for California Secretary of State
Incumbent Alex Padilla defeated Mark Meuser in the general election for California Secretary of State on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Alex Padilla (D) | 64.5 | 7,909,521 | |
| Mark Meuser (R) | 35.5 | 4,362,545 | ||
| Total votes: 12,272,066 (100.00% precincts reporting) | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for California Secretary of State
The following candidates ran in the primary for California Secretary of State on June 5, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Alex Padilla (D) | 52.6 | 3,475,633 | |
| ✔ | Mark Meuser (R) | 31.0 | 2,047,903 | |
| Ruben Major (D) | 5.4 | 355,036 | ||
| Raul Rodriguez Jr. (R) | 5.0 | 330,460 | |
| Gail Lightfoot (L) | 2.4 | 155,879 | ||
| Michael Feinstein (G) | 2.1 | 136,725 | ||
| C.T. Weber (Peace and Freedom Party) | 0.9 | 61,375 | ||
| Erik Rydberg (G) | 0.7 | 48,705 | ||
| Total votes: 6,611,716 | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2014
| Secretary of State of California, 2014 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Alex Padilla |
53.6% | 3,799,711 | |
| Republican | Pete Peterson | 46.4% | 3,285,334 | |
| Total Votes | 7,085,045 | |||
| Election results via California Secretary of State | ||||
Election analysis
Click the tabs below to view information about demographics, past elections, and partisan control of the state.
- Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the state.
- Statewide elections - Information about recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections in the state.
- State partisanship - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.
- Demographics - Information about the state's demographics and how they compare to the country as a whole.
Presidential elections
Cook PVI by congressional district
2020 presidential results by 2022 congressional district lines
2012-2020
How a state's counties vote in a presidential election and the size of those counties can provide additional insights into election outcomes at other levels of government including statewide and congressional races. Below, four categories are used to describe each county's voting pattern over the 2012, 2016, and 2020 presidential elections: Solid, Trending, Battleground, and New. Click [show] on the table below for examples:
| County-level voting pattern categories | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | |||||||
| Status | 2012 | 2016 | 2020 | ||||
| Solid Democratic | D | D | D | ||||
| Trending Democratic | R | D | D | ||||
| Battleground Democratic | D | R | D | ||||
| New Democratic | R | R | D | ||||
| Republican | |||||||
| Status | 2012 | 2016 | 2020 | ||||
| Solid Republican | R | R | R | ||||
| Trending Republican | D | R | R | ||||
| Battleground Republican | R | D | R | ||||
| New Republican | D | D | R | ||||
Following the 2020 presidential election, 83.3% of Californians lived in one of the state's 31 Solid Democratic counties, which voted for the Democratic presidential candidate in every election from 2012 to 2020, and 8.3% lived in one of two Trending Democratic counties: Nevada and Orange. Overall, California was Solid Democratic, having voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2012, Hillary Clinton (D) in 2016, and Joe Biden (D) in 2020. Use the table below to view the total number of each type of county in California following the 2020 election as well as the overall percentage of the state population located in each county type.
| California county-level statistics, 2020 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solid Democratic | 31 | 83.3% | |||||
| Trending Democratic | 2 | 8.3% | |||||
| Solid Republican | 23 | 7.8% | |||||
| New Democratic | 2 | 0.6% | |||||
| Total voted Democratic | 35 | 92.2% | |||||
| Total voted Republican | 23 | 7.8% | |||||
Historical voting trends
California presidential election results (1900-2020)
- 15 Democratic wins
- 15 Republican wins
- 1 other win
| Year | 1900 | 1904 | 1908 | 1912 | 1916 | 1920 | 1924 | 1928 | 1932 | 1936 | 1940 | 1944 | 1948 | 1952 | 1956 | 1960 | 1964 | 1968 | 1972 | 1976 | 1980 | 1984 | 1988 | 1992 | 1996 | 2000 | 2004 | 2008 | 2012 | 2016 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winning Party | R | R | R | P[2] | D | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D |
Statewide elections
This section details the results of the five most recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections held in the state.
U.S. Senate elections
The table below details the vote in the five most recent U.S. Senate races in California.
| U.S. Senate election results in California | ||
|---|---|---|
| Race | Winner | Runner up |
| 2018 | 54.2% |
45.8% |
| 2016 | 61.8% |
38.2% |
| 2012 | 62.5% |
37.5% |
| 2010 | 52.1% |
42.5% |
| 2006 | 59.4% |
35.2% |
| Average | 58.0 | 39.8 |
Gubernatorial elections
- See also: Governor of California
The table below details the vote in the five most recent gubernatorial elections in California.
| Gubernatorial election results in California | ||
|---|---|---|
| Race | Winner | Runner up |
| 2018 | 61.9% |
38.1% |
| 2014 | 60.0% |
40.0% |
| 2010 | 53.8% |
40.9% |
| 2006 | 55.9% |
38.9% |
| 2003 | 48.6% |
31.5% |
| Average | 56.0 | 37.9 |
State partisanship
Congressional delegation
The table below displays the partisan composition of California's congressional delegation as of November 2022.
| Congressional Partisan Breakdown from California, November 2022 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | U.S. Senate | U.S. House | Total |
| Democratic | 2 | 42 | 44 |
| Republican | 0 | 11 | 11 |
| Independent | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Vacancies | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 2 | 53 | 55 |
State executive
The table below displays the officeholders in California's top four state executive offices as of November 2022.
| State executive officials in California, November 2022 | |
|---|---|
| Office | Officeholder |
| Governor | |
| Lieutenant Governor | |
| Secretary of State | |
| Attorney General | |
State legislature
The tables below highlight the partisan composition of the California State Legislature as of November 2022.
California State Senate
| Party | As of November 2022 | |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | 31 | |
| Republican Party | 9 | |
| Vacancies | 0 | |
| Total | 40 | |
California State Assembly
| Party | As of November 2022 | |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | 60 | |
| Republican Party | 19 | |
| Independent | 1 | |
| Vacancies | 0 | |
| Total | 80 | |
Trifecta control
As of November 2022, California was a Democratic trifecta, with majorities in both chambers of the state legislature and control of the governorship. The table below displays the historical trifecta status of the state.
California Party Control: 1992-2022
Seventeen years of Democratic trifectas • No Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.
| Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D |
| Senate | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D |
| Assembly | D | D | D | S | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D |
Demographics
The table below details demographic data in California and compares it to the broader United States as of 2019.
| Demographic Data for California | ||
|---|---|---|
| California | United States | |
| Population | 39,538,223 | 331,449,281 |
| Land area (sq mi) | 155,857 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White | 56.1% | 70.4% |
| Black/African American | 5.7% | 12.6% |
| Asian | 14.8% | 5.6% |
| Native American | 0.8% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander | 0.4% | 0.2% |
| Two or more | 7.9% | 5.2% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 39.1% | 18.2% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate | 83.9% | 88.5% |
| College graduation rate | 34.7% | 32.9% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income | $78,672 | $64,994 |
| Persons below poverty level | 12.6% | 12.8% |
| Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2020). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2015-2020). | ||
| **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
See also
| California | State Executive Elections | News and Analysis |
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External links
Footnotes
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