2026 Election Results: In California’s open 26th congressional district, Jacqui Irwin jumps to an early lead

Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin, D-Thousand Oaks, had a sizeable lead in this open House race for the June 2 primary election, based on partial returns reported by the California secretary of state’s office shortly after 9:15 p.m. Tuesday.

Rep. Julia Brownley has represented the 26th Congressional District — which includes portions of Los Angeles and Ventura counties — for the past nearly 14 years. But she’s decided to retire and earlier this year endorsed Irwin— who can’t run for the Assembly again due to term limits — as her successor.

LIVE ELECTION RESULTS: See the latest vote counts

Not having an incumbent in this race left the door wide open for a slew of people to toss their hats in the ring.

Other candidates include Democrats Chris Espinosa, a federal policy advisor; businessman Liam Andres O’Neill Hernandez; physician Sonia Kacker; and Sasan Samadzadeh, a construction inspector and caretaker.

On the Republican side, the candidates are Sam Gallucci, a business executive and pastor; Michael Koslow, a businessman; Daniel Miller, a businessman, actor and artist; and William “Bill” Scott, a systems engineer.

Irwin led with 43% of the vote, followed by Gallucci with 21% and Koslow with 10%. The other candidates each had less than 10% of the vote at the time of reporting.

Democrats have a nearly 15 percentage point voter registration advantage over Republicans in this district, which lies mostly in Ventura County but includes portions of northern Los Angeles County, including Westlake Village, Agoura Hills and Calabasas.

And as a result of the Proposition 50 redistricting, the district now extends further east into the Antelope Valley, picking up communities such as Lake Hughes and Quartz Hill.

The top two vote-getters in the primary election, regardless of party affiliation, will face off in the November general election.

Vote tallies will be updated throughout the night and in the coming days as more ballots are counted, so check back periodically for the latest information.

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