Rep. Honda leads in California House race

Rep. Mike Honda (D-Calif.) is holding a more than 3,000 vote lead over his Democratic Party opponent Ro Khanna Wednesday morning in a race being closely watched by the technology industry. 

The match-up in California’s 17th District is one of eight California House races yet to be called by The Associated Press Wednesday, even with 100 percent of precincts reporting. 

Honda leads with all Election Day ballots counted by about 5 percent. But he will hold off on an announcement until finding out how many absentee and provisional ballots remain to be counted in two counties.

“With the information available it appears that the voters have made their decision to keep Congressman Honda as their Representative in recognition of his work delivering for the District,” Honda’s campaign said in a statement. 

Khanna’s campaign said the winner likely will not be known for days. 

“There are still over 40,000 votes outstanding that need to be counted, and we probably won’t know the exact outcome of this race for several more days,” he said in a note to supporters. “So while we’re waiting for the final result, I wanted to say thank you for standing with me.”

{mosads}Honda is battling for a eighth term in a Democrat vs. Democrat primary facilitated by California rules that allow the two candidates with the most votes in the primary to advance, regardless of party. 

Khanna, a former official with the Commerce Department, has the backing of major technology executives. He has received $350,000 in contributions from the tech industry, which surpasses even high-profile Senate candidates. 

Honda has the backing of the Democratic Party, including President Obama and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). He led with 52.2 percent of the vote, compared to 47.8 percent for Khanna on Wednesday morning. 

In California’s 26th District, Rep. Julia Brownley (D-Calif.) maintained a 500-vote lead over her Republican opponent, Jeff Gorell, a state lawmaker and Navy Reserve commander. 

In California’s 31st District, Democrat Pete Aguilar held on to a more than 1,600-vote lead over Republican Paul Chabot. The race was a pick-up opportunity after Democrats failed to make the final ballot in 2012. 

In California’s 52nd District, Carl DeMaio held a more than 700-vote lead over Democratic Rep. Scott Peters.

DeMaio would become the first openly gay Republican to be elected to the House. But he has battled allegations of sexual harassment that surfaced late in the race. 

In other races, Jim Costa (D-Calif.) surprisingly trails his Republican opponent, while Democratic Rep. Jerry McNerney held a lead over his opponent, and Democratic Rep. Raul Ruiz claimed victory.

—updated 6:15 p.m.