Kern County goes blue in the midterms, backs Democrat Xavier Becerra over GOP candidate

Kern County, California, backed Democrat Xavier Becerra over Republican Steve Hilton in the governor’s race by about 4,000 votes, according to results reported one week after the midterm election. Becerra received 51% of the county vote to Hilton’s 48.9%. It is the first time in more than 45 years that Kern County has supported a Democratic gubernatorial candidate. A political science professor cautioned that the result does not mean the county has permanently turned blue.