While gay former West Sacramento mayor Christopher Cabaldon will be the first Filipino American in the state Senate, Palm Springs City Councilmember Lisa Middleton is waiting to see if she will join him in Sacramento as the first transgender member of the Legislature. They are among the 20 LGBTQ candidates who ran Tuesday for state legislative seats across California.
According to the early returns, Middleton finished strong in her race for the 19th Senate District spanning Riverside and San Bernardino counties against state Senator Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh (R-Yucaipa). After being statistically tied at 50% Tuesday night, Middleton fell into second place behind Ochoa Bogh with nearly 47% of the vote as of early Wednesday morning, according to the returns posted by the Secretary of State's office.
Running in a decidedly Democratic district with the endorsement of termed out state Senator Bill Dodd (D-Napa), Cabaldon was expected to easily win his November 5 contest for the sprawling Senate District 3 seat that includes portions of Contra Costa, Solano, Sonoma, and Napa counties as well as Yolo and Sacramento counties.
Cabaldon currently has 61% of the vote, putting him in first place ahead of his Republican opponent, Dixon City Councilmember Thom Bogue. His victory will make Cabaldon the first out person to represent the Bay Area's more northern counties.
The two out female Senate candidates running for seats that also include parts of Contra Costa County are currently trailing in second place. AC Transit Board member Jovanka Beckles, a former Richmond City Council member who identifies as queer and lesbian, has almost 40% of the vote in the open Senate District 7 seat race.
In first place to represent the district that spans Alameda and Contra Costa counties is Berkeley Mayor Jesse Arreguín. He currently has 60% of the vote.
In the race for the open Senate District 9 seat that covers much of Contra Costa County and a portion of southern Alameda County, San Ramon City Councilmember Marisol Rubio is in second with 44.8% of the vote. Rubio, a mom of an adult daughter who survived terminal brain cancer as an infant, identifies as gender-nonconforming, demisexual, and biromantic.
Leading the contest is Assemblymember Tim Grayson (D-Concord). He has taken first place with 55% of the vote based on the early returns.
Beckles was vying to be one of the first out Black Latinas in the state Legislature. Rubio would be the first out Latina legislator from the Bay Area.
Other races
Several other history-making LGBTQ legislative candidates are locked in close races in Southern California. Middleton's colleague Palm Springs City Councilmember Christy Holstege is one of several candidates aiming to become the first bisexual Democratic women in the Legislature.
She is in a rematch against Assemblymember Greg Wallis (R-Bermuda Dunes) after coming close to winning his Assembly District 47 seat in 2022. Holstege is currently in first place with 50.4% of the vote.
Sasha Renée Pérez is seeking the open 25th Senate District seat spanning Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties against Republican Elizabeth Wong Ahlers, a member of the Crescenta Valley Town Council. As of now, Renée Pérez is in first place with close to 58% of the early returns.
In Los Angeles County, Sade Elhawary is in first place with 59% of the early results against fellow Democrat Efren Martinez for the open Assembly District 57 seat. Elhawary, who prefers the term fluid over bisexual when it comes to her sexual orientation, would also be one of the first out Black Latinas serving in the Statehouse.
Gay former Los Angeles County Democratic Party chair Mark Gonzalez is leading in the race for the open Assembly District 54 seat. He has taken first place with nearly 57% of the vote against gay progressive Democrat John K. Yi.
Lynwood City Councilmember José Luis Solache easily defeated his Republican opponent, Paul Jones, to claim the open Assembly's District 62 seat. Solache took first place with nearly 63% of the vote.
Lesbian Assemblymember Sabrina Cervantes (D-Corona), a married mom, is leading in the race for the open Senate District 31 seat. She has 53.4% of the vote against her Republican opponent, Cynthia Navarro.
Cervantes' younger sister Clarissa, who is queer and bisexual, had been leading on election night but had fallen into second place Wednesday in her bid to succeed her sibling in the 58th Assembly District. She was trailing at 49.4% of the vote in her race against Republican Leticia Castillo.
Former "Amazing Race" TV show contestant Dom Jones, a Black queer Orange County resident, fell short in her bid to unseat Assemblymember Diane Dixon (R-Newport Beach) in the 72nd District. Jones trails with about 40% of the unofficial vote.
In the Republican versus Republican race for the open Assembly District 75 seat in San Diego County, gay conservative firebrand Carl DeMaio is in first place with 60% of the vote. The former San Diego city councilmember is trailing Andrew Hayes, president of the Lakeside Union School District Board of Trustees.
Should DeMaio pull off a win, he would become the first out Republican elected to the Legislature. And it would automatically raise questions if he would be allowed membership in the Legislative LGBTQ Caucus, having opposed various LGBTQ-related bills it has backed over the years.
What was certain headed into Election Day was seeing the current 12-person affinity group for LGBTQ legislators increase in size during the 2025 legislative session even though three current Legislative LGBTQ Caucus members are departing. Lesbian state Senators Toni Atkins (D-San Diego) and Susan Talamantes Eggman (D-Stockton) are both termed out this year, while gay Assemblymember Evan Low (D-Cupertino) opted to run for Congress instead of another legislative term.
The six male incumbents who did seek reelection Tuesday all won their races. In the greater Bay Area region they are gay state Senators Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) and John Laird (D-Santa Cruz), and bisexual Assemblymember Alex Lee (D-San Jose).
The rest represent Southern California districts. They are gay Assemblymembers Corey A. Jackson, Ph.D., (D-Perris), Chris Ward (D-San Diego) and Rick Chavez Zbur (D-Hollywood).
Editor's note: This story will be updated as new vote totals are released.
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