2022 California Attorney General election

For related races, see 2022 United States attorney general elections.

2022 California Attorney General election

←  2018 November 8, 2022 2026 →
Registered	21,940,274
Candidate Rob Bonta Nathan Hochman Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 6,339,441 4,390,428 Percentage 59.1% 40.9%
County results Bonta:     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%     80–90% Hochman:     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%
Attorney General before election Rob Bonta Democratic Elected Attorney General Rob Bonta Democratic

The 2022 California Attorney General election was held on November 8, 2022, to elect the Attorney General of California. Incumbent Democratic Attorney General Rob Bonta was appointed to the office on April 23, 2021, following the resignation of Xavier Becerra to become the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services. ^{[1] [2]} Bonta won a full term. ^[3]

Candidates

A primary election took place on June 7, 2022. ^[4] Under California law, all candidates appear on the same ballot under a nonpartisan blanket primary, with the top two finishers advancing to the general election.

Democratic Party

Advanced

• Rob Bonta, incumbent attorney general ^{[5] [6]}

Declined

• Ellen Corbett, former state senator from the 10th district (2006–2014) ^[6]
• Lou Correa, U.S. Representative for California's 46th congressional district (running for re-election; endorsed Bonta) ^[7]
• Jeffrey F. Rosen, Santa Clara County district attorney (2011–present) ^[8]
• Adam Schiff, U.S. Representative for California's 28th congressional district (running for re-election) ^[6]

Republican Party

Advanced

• Nathan Hochman, former U.S. Assistant Attorney General ^[9]

Eliminated

• Eric Early, candidate for attorney general in 2018, ^[6] nominee for California's 28th congressional district in 2020

Green Party

Eliminated

• Dan Kapelovitz, candidate for governor in the 2021 recall election ^[10]

No party preference

Eliminated

• Anne Marie Schubert, Sacramento County district attorney ^[11]

Endorsements

Rob Bonta (D)

Organizations

• California Correctional Peace Officers Association ^[12]
• California Democratic Party ^[13]
• California Teachers Association ^[14]
• Democracy for America ^[15]
• Giffords ^[16]
• Stonewall Democrats ^[17]

Nathan Hochman (R)

U.S. Representatives

• Michelle Steel, U.S. Representative for California's 48th congressional district (2021–present) ^[18]
• David Valadao, U.S. Representative for California's 21st congressional district (2021–present) ^[19]

Organizations

• California Republican Party ^[20]

Dan Kapelovitz (G)

Organizations

• Green Party of California ^[21]
• Peace and Freedom Party ^[21]

Primary election

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [a]	Margin of error	Rob Bonta (D)	Eric Early (R)	Nathan Hochman (R)	Dan Kapelovitz (G)	Anne Marie Schubert (NPP)	Undecided
Berkeley IGS [22]	May 24–31, 2022	3,438 (LV)	± 2.2%	46%	16%	12%	2%	6%	19%

Results

Results by county

  Bonta

•   20–30%
•   30–40%
•   40–50%
•   50–60%
•   60–70%
•   70–80%

  Hochman

•   30–40%

  Early

•   30–40%
•   40–50%

Primary election results ^{[23] [24]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Rob Bonta (incumbent)	3,756,486	54.32%
	Republican	Nathan Hochman	1,256,465	18.17%
	Republican	Eric Early	1,142,747	16.52%
	No party preference	Anne Marie Schubert	539,746	7.81%
	Green	Dan Kapelovitz	219,912	3.18%
Total votes			6,915,356	100.0%

General election

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
Sabato's Crystal Ball [25]	Safe D	September 14, 2022
Elections Daily [26]	Safe D	November 1, 2022

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [a]	Margin of error	Rob Bonta (D)	Nathan Hochman (R)	Undecided
USC [27]	October 30 – November 2, 2022	802 (RV)	± 3.5%	60%	40%	–

Results

Shift by county

Trend by county

Legend

•   Republican — >15%
•   Republican — +12.5−15%
•   Republican — +10−12.5%
•   Republican — +7.5−10%
•   Republican — +5−7.5%
•   Republican — +2.5−5%
•   Republican — +0−2.5%
•   Democratic — +0−2.5%
•   Democratic — +2.5−5%
•   Democratic — +5−7.5%
•   Democratic — +7.5-10%

2022 California Attorney General election ^[28]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Rob Bonta (incumbent)	6,339,441	59.08%	−4.47%
	Republican	Nathan Hochman	4,390,428	40.92%	+4.47%
Total votes			10,729,869	100.0%
	Democratic hold

By congressional district

Bonta won 38 of 52 congressional districts, with the remaining 14 going to Hochman, including two that elected Democrats. ^[29]

District	Bonta	Hochman	Representative
1st	35%	65%	Doug LaMalfa
2nd	71%	29%	Jared Huffman
3rd	44%	56%	Kevin Kiley
4th	64%	36%	Mike Thompson
5th	39%	61%	Tom McClintock
6th	55%	45%	Ami Bera
7th	64%	36%	Doris Matsui
8th	74%	26%	John Garamendi
9th	49.5%	50.5%	Josh Harder
10th	64%	36%	Mark DeSaulnier
11th	84%	16%	Nancy Pelosi
12th	89%	11%	Barbara Lee
13th	47%	53%	John Duarte
14th	67%	33%	Eric Swalwell
15th	75%	25%	Jackie Speier (117th Congress)
			Kevin Mullin (118th Congress)
16th	71%	29%	Anna Eshoo
17th	69%	31%	Ro Khanna
18th	66%	34%	Zoe Lofgren
19th	65%	35%	Jimmy Panetta
20th	31%	69%	Kevin McCarthy
21st	52%	48%	Jim Costa
22nd	49.94%	50.06%	David Valadao
23rd	40%	60%	Jay Obernolte
24th	59%	41%	Salud Carbajal
25th	53%	47%	Raul Ruiz
26th	53%	47%	Julia Brownley
27th	49%	51%	Mike Garcia
28th	62%	38%	Judy Chu
29th	73%	27%	Tony Cárdenas
30th	75%	25%	Adam Schiff
31st	58%	42%	Grace Napolitano
32nd	65%	35%	Brad Sherman
33rd	55%	45%	Pete Aguilar
34th	81%	19%	Jimmy Gomez
35th	56%	44%	Norma Torres
36th	66%	34%	Ted Lieu
37th	85%	15%	Karen Bass (117th Congress)
			Sydney Kamlager-Dove (118th Congress)
38th	57%	43%	Linda Sánchez
39th	55%	45%	Mark Takano
40th	44%	56%	Young Kim
41st	45%	55%	Ken Calvert
42nd	67%	33%	Lucille Roybal-Allard (117th Congress)
			Robert Garcia (118th Congress)
43rd	78%	22%	Maxine Waters
44th	70%	30%	Nanette Barragán
45th	48%	52%	Michelle Steel
46th	59%	41%	Lou Correa
47th	49%	51%	Katie Porter
48th	39%	61%	Darrell Issa
49th	50.1%	49.9%	Mike Levin
50th	60%	40%	Scott Peters
51st	59%	41%	Sara Jacobs
52nd	63%	37%	Juan Vargas

See also

• 2022 United States attorney general elections
• 2022 California elections

Notes

1. Key:
   A – all adults
   RV – registered voters
   LV – likely voters
   V – unclear

References

1. Stolberg, Sheryl Gay (December 6, 2020). "Biden Picks Xavier Becerra to Lead Health and Human Services". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 6, 2020.
2. "Governor Newsom Swears in Rob Bonta as Attorney General of California". gov.ca.gov. April 23, 2021.
3. Wiley, Hannah (November 12, 2022). "Democratic incumbent Rob Bonta beats Republican Nathan Hochman in California attorney general race". The Los Angeles Times . Retrieved April 5, 2023.
4. "Statewide Direct Primary Election - June 7, 2022 :: California Secretary of State". Office of the Secretary of State. The State of California. Retrieved January 26, 2021.
5. White, Jeremy (May 5, 2021). "Newsom's AG pick will test California's mood on criminal justice". Politico.
6. McGreevy, Patrick (March 27, 2021). "California attorney general-designee Rob Bonta is already gearing up for the 2022 election". Los Angeles Times.
7. "Candidate Filing Log with Statements". Orange County Registrar of Voters. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
8. Ogul, Michael (March 19, 2021). "Jeff Rosen Sought the Death Penalty For An Innocent Man. He Shouldn't Be California's Next AG". The Appeal.
9. Walters, Dan (May 4, 2021). "A California showdown over crime and punishment looms". The Modesto Bee.
10. "Primary Election - June 7, 2022". Archived from the original on March 26, 2022. Retrieved March 26, 2022.
11. Bretón, Marcos (April 26, 2021). "Sacramento DA Anne Marie Schubert announces she's running for state attorney general". The Sacramento Bee.
12. "Unions again take center stage in housing debate". Politico. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
13. "2022 Primary Endorsements" (PDF). cadem.org. California Democratic Party. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
14. "2022 June Primary Election Candidate Recommendations". cta.org. California Teachers Association.
15. "Democracy for America : Our Candidates". Democracy for America . Retrieved July 16, 2022.
16. "Giffords Endorses Five Gun Safety Champion Attorneys General". Giffords . May 13, 2022. Retrieved May 14, 2022.
17. "Endorsements". stonewalldems.org. Stonewall Democrats . Retrieved March 7, 2022.
18. "Congresswoman Michelle Steel endorses Nathan Hochman for Attorney General". www.oc-breeze.com. September 15, 2021. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
19. "Congressman David Valadao endorses Nathan Hochman for CA Attorney General". Orange County Breeze. June 29, 2022.
20. Mehta, Seema (April 24, 2022). "California GOP endorses Brian Dahle for governor despite controversy over payment to party". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 25, 2022.
21. Winger, Richard (November 15, 2021). "Two California Ballot-Qualified Parties Will Run a Joint Campaign for Statewide Office in 2022". Ballot Access News. Retrieved March 17, 2022.
22. Berkeley IGS
23. "Primary Election - June 7, 2022". Archived from the original on March 26, 2022. Retrieved March 26, 2022.
24. "California June 7, 2022 Primary Statement of Vote" (PDF). Retrieved July 16, 2022.
25. "The Attorneys General: A Dozen Races Dot the Competitive Landscape". Sabato's Crystal Ball. September 14, 2022. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
26. Solomon, Zack (November 7, 2022). "Elections Daily Secretary of State Ratings". Elections Daily. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
27. USC
28. "General Election - Statement of the Vote, November 8, 2022" (PDF). California Secretary of State. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
29. California 2022-11-08 results by district (@elium2) (Report).

External links

Official campaign websites

• Rob Bonta (D) for Attorney General
• Nathan Hochman (R) for Attorney General