State Senate District 23 Results: Medina Vs. Ochoa Bogh

SAN GORGONIO PASS AREA, CA — A closely contested race being watched is California State Senate District 23 — which pits a Democratic San Bernardino City Unified School District member against a Republican Yucaipa-Calimesa Joint Unified School District member.

If elected, Abigail Medina will be the first Democrat to win the seat since district lines were redrawn in 2010. If Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh (Yucaipa) is elected, she will continue the trend of GOP candidates beating Democrats in the 23rd since district lines were redrawn in 2010.

The race is nearly split as of Wednesday morning. Approximately 400,000 vote-by-mail and 25,000 provisional ballots still must be processed in Riverside County. Work on those began Wednesday morning. Ballots that are postmarked on or before Election Day also remain to be counted. The next updated results will be posted at 6 p.m. Thursday.

It's unclear how many uncounted ballots remain in the 23rd State Senate District, but the race is expected to go to the wire. You can see the results as they are updated in real-time below. Be sure to refresh this page for the latest:

The winner will replace Sen. Mike Morrell (R), who termed out in 2020 and was therefore ineligible to run for the district seat again.

The 23rd includes the cities of Banning and Beaumont, and encompasses a large swath of the Inland Empire, stretching as far north as Rancho Cucamonga in the northwest to Menifee in the south. It also includes several San Bernardino mountain communities and a small slice of the High Desert.

The two female candidates have waged a tight battle. In the March 3 presidential primary election, Medina captured 59,881 votes or 28.1 percent of ballots cast, compared to Bogh who garnered 52,820 votes or 24.8 percent. The two front runners beat out two Republicans and one Democrat in the race.

According to Medina’s biography, she is the eldest of three children and the daughter of working-class immigrant parents.

In her youth, she was a part of the foster care system and changed schools frequently, the bio stated.

As a young mom, Medina worked in fields picking tomatoes in central California to help support her family, according to her bio. She has five children.

Medina ran for the SBCUSD in 2013 to beat the longtime incumbent.

She has worked with numerous community organizations and has supported environmental protection efforts in the Inland Empire, according to her bio.

In addition to environmental and education issues, Medina ran on a campaign of affordable housing, healthcare for all, racial justice, and liveable wages.

According to Bogh’s bio, she is a native Californian. She ran on a campaign highlighting homeownership as the American Dream that should be attainable for all. A graduate of San Bernardino High and UC Santa Barbara, Bogh went on to teach English language learners and is a longtime Realtor.

In addition to housing affordability, Bogh’s campaign emphasized schools, lower taxes and infrastructure. The Yucaipa resident is married with three children.