Episode summary
California Runoff and Other Primary Races; Iran Escalation | Bloomberg Daybreak: US Edition
Summary
California’s gubernatorial primary is shaping into a November matchup between Republican Steve Hilton, who led with 27.7% of the vote, and Democrat Javier Becerra, who had 25.4%. Tom Steyer trailed in third, and the host noted that under California’s jungle primary system the top two finishers advance regardless of party. In Los Angeles, incumbent Karen Bass was pushed into a runoff after falling short of 50%, with Spencer Pratt emerging as the leading challenger in second place. University of Virginia politics professor Jennifer Lawless said the result was not surprising in a volatile race, and warned Bass faces a referendum on her handling of the city’s wildfire response.
In New Jersey and Iowa, Democrats and Republicans also locked in key general-election matchups. Rebecca Bennett, a former Navy helicopter pilot, is projected to win the Democratic primary in New Jersey’s 7th District, where she will face GOP incumbent Tom Kean Jr., who has been absent from Capitol Hill since March with an unexplained medical issue. In Iowa, Josh Turck won the Democratic Senate primary and will challenge Ashley Hinson, while Zach Lund beat Trump-backed Randy Feenstra in the governor’s race.
The broadcast also tracked escalating U.S.-Iran exchanges, new tariff plans on imports from 60 trading partners, and more Washington turbulence. Mike Pompeo said he expects the Iran conflict to continue, while Bloomberg’s reporters said the administration’s proposed tariffs would not take effect immediately. The program also covered Scott Pelley’s firing at CBS News and another strong session for U.S. stocks, with the S&P 500 rising for a ninth straight day.
Key takeaways
- Steve Hilton and Javier Becerra appear set for a California governor’s runoff, while billionaire Tom Steyer lagged behind in third.
- Karen Bass was forced into a Los Angeles runoff, and Jennifer Lawless said the race could become a referendum on Bass’s wildfire response.
- Rebecca Bennett is projected to win New Jersey’s 7th District Democratic primary and faces Tom Kean Jr., who has missed more than 100 votes.
- Josh Turck won Iowa’s Democratic Senate primary and will face Republican Ashley Hinson in November, while Zach Lund beat Trump-backed Randy Feenstra for governor.
- The U.S. and Iran exchanged strikes again, and Mike Pompeo said he expects the conflict to continue.
- The administration’s proposed tariff of at least 10% on imports from 60 trading partners is subject to public comment and review before taking effect.
Notable quotes
“This is the first time that an LA mayor has faced a runoff in more than a decade”
“she's actually got a shot at defeating an incumbent”
“I think it is very likely that we will have to go back at it and provide more weaponry to the Israelis”
“The S&P 500 is now gained for nine straight days”
How the episode opens
Bloomberg Audio Studios. Podcasts, radio, news. — Good morning. I'm Nathan Hager. — And I'm Karen Moscow. Here are the stories we're following today. — Karen, we begin with politics and a busy night of primary elections from coast to coast. Let's start in California where a crowded race for governor is still being decided. Right now, about half the votes are in and Republican Steve Hilton is in the lead with 27.7% of the vote.
Very much as if Californians really will have the chance to vote for change in November AND TAKE AND TAKE OUR STATE and take our state in a new direction. — Steve Hilton is a GOP strategist with President Trump's endorsement. He's followed by Democrat Javier Becerra in second with 25.4%. Billionaire Tom Steyer is third with 19.6%. The top two vote getters will face each other in the November general election under California's jungle primary system.
And in the Los Angeles mayor's race, Nathan, incumbent Karen Bass has been forced into a runoff. According to the Associated Press, she currently has 36% of the vote, short of the 50% of the vote needed to win the election outright. Her challenger still has not been decided, but right now Republican Spencer Pratt is in the lead for second place with 29.1% of the vote.
Obviously, I was going to accept whatever God's plan was tonight. I was going to be happy if I wasn't moving forward cuz I would have known God didn't want me to be the mayor. And but now I feel very confident that I I'm going to continue to work hard.
Spencer Pratt is a former reality TV star who's accused Bass of letting last year's Los Angeles wildfires get out of control and not doing enough to tackle homelessness.
From the episode’s captions: roughly the first two minutes, lightly cleaned. Keep watching on YouTube →
Topics
- california runoff
- primary elections
- iran escalation
- forced labor tariffs
- media reshuffling
Companies and tickers mentioned
- PARA
- Paramount Global
Watch the episode
Summary, takeaways and quote selection by Octagon. Quotes are short excerpts; the full conversation is in the episode.
More from Bloomberg Daybreak: US Edition
-
Nvidia Faces Post-Huang Reckoning, Microsoft Races to Fix Outage | Bloomberg Daybreak: US Edition -
Daybreak Weekend: Nvidia Earnings, UK Labour Market, APEC Summit | Bloomberg Daybreak: US Edition -
Nvidia Weighs Succession Plans; Congress Preparing to Subpoena Jensen Huang | Bloomberg... -
GOP Thwarts Hegseth Impeachment; CoreWeave Quiets Doubts | Bloomberg Daybreak: US Edition -
FBI Investigates Nvidia CEO, Anthropic IPO Snafu | Bloomberg Daybreak: US Edition -
Nvidia CEO Affair Sparks Probe, Trump Admits Policy Mistake | Bloomberg Daybreak: US Edition
Bloomberg Daybreak: US Edition, this episode and its artwork belong to Bloomberg. Octagon is not affiliated with the show; this page is an independent summary.
