Good morning. At current tallies, Democrats hold the Senate 48 to 47, and Republicans hold the House 197 to 174. We still won’t know the final results of some races for weeks — and the GOP could still take control of both chambers — but a widely expected decisive Republican victory did not materialize last night.

The red “wave” was more of a “ripple,” as one panelist at yesterday’s Annenberg watch party quipped.

Personally, I ran off with an industrial-sized bin of leftover Chipotle chips and salsa from the Annenberg Media Center, so I don’t have much to complain about. Check out photos from AM’s photo desk here, or my own here. And now, here’s the rest of the news you need to know for today.

Democrats predictably swept key state-level offices. Gov. Gavin Newsom, Attorney General Rob Bonta and Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis all cruised to reelection. Sen. Alex Padilla — appointed in 2020 to fill Vice President Kamala Harris’ seat when she left for the White House — became the first Latino ever elected to represent California in the U.S. Senate.

Staff / CalMatters

The Los Angeles mayoral race is still too close to call. Businessman Rick Caruso leads with 51.25% of the vote while Rep. Karen Bass trails with 48.75%. Only 14.04% of the expected vote has been counted.

Julia Wick, Benjamin Oreskes and James Rainey / Los Angeles Times

Former Long Beach Police Chief Robert Luna holds a sizable lead over incumbent Alex Villanueva in the L.A. County sheriff’s race. With 42% of the expected vote in, Luna holds 56.8% and Villanueva trails with 43.2%.

Staff / The New York Times

Californians voted to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution, rejected a proposition to allow betting on sports games and upheld a ban on flavored tobacco. (Check out the Chronicle’s story for a full rundown of ballot propositions.)

Dustin Gardiner / San Francisco Chronicle

Re: the flash-flood warning you probably got yesterday afternoon. Turns out it was only meant for about 1,500 people in the Fish Fire burn area east of Duarte, but it was mistakenly broadcast to all of L.A. County. Still, one person was killed and two went missing Tuesday morning as stormwater rushed parts of the Ontario region.

Alexandra E. Petri and Christian Martinez / Los Angeles Times

A Black L.A. County sheriff’s sergeant sued the county, alleging he was subject to retaliation for complaining of racial discrimination and the presence of a deputy gang at the East Los Angeles Station. Sgt. Reginald Hoffman is seeking unspecified damages.

City News Service

COVID-19 was the second-leading cause of death in the first six months of 2022 in L.A. County, behind coronary heart disease. Still, COVID’s mortality rate in the first half of 2022 was significantly less deadly than the same span in 2021.

Rong-Gong Lin II, Luke Money and Emily Alpert Reyes / Los Angeles Times

Nation / world

There was more to the story than inflation — Democrats showed up to protect abortion and democratic rights, blocking the “red wave” Republicans had predicted across the country. (The New York Times)
Neither Georgia Democratic incumbent Sen. Raphael Warnock nor Republican challenger Herschel Walker have reached more than 50% of the vote, which could mean control of the Senate will be decided in a December runoff election. (Reuters)
Senate control comes down to four states: Arizona, Georgia, Nevada and Wisconsin. But it could be a while before those races are called because of a high number of mail-in ballots. (Politico)
New York Governor Kathy Hochul won her first full term by a narrow margin, although Democratic losses are expected in bot†h the state legislature and Congress. (The New York Times)
Kentucky voters rejected a proposed anti-abortion state constitutional amendment, and Michigan voters solidified abortion rights in the state constitution. (Associated Press)
The first Black governor of Maryland, the first Gen Z member of Congress, the first openly lesbian woman to be elected governor in the country — candidates made history this election cycle. (The Washington Post)

Other things we’re reading

Tomo’s picks:

“New Endorsements for College Athletes Resurface an Old Concern: Sex Sells” (The New York Times)
“Does California really need to hold elections in November?” (San Francisco Chronicle)
“James Bennett’s Firing Was Just One of Many Illiberal Errors” (New York Magazine)
“Is Elon Musk a genius or an idiot?” (Los Angeles Times)

Anna’s picks:

“Hillary Clinton Accepted Her Loss, but a Lot Has Changed Since 2016” (The New York Times)
“Damon Young: I mask at the gym. Why do I feel so ... dumb?” (The Washington Post)

In case you missed it

Federal immigration authorities want to deport David DePape, the man accused of assaulting the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi with a hammer — but the district attorney refused to turn over the Canadian citizen, citing San Francisco’s sanctuary city policies.

Rachel Swan / San Francisco Chronicle

The Orange County Board of Eduction is facing backlash over a proposed curriculum ban. The policy, proposed by Trustee Ken Williams, would forbid teaching curriculum that advocates for abolishing the police or claims that systemic racial oppression exists in America. Opponents decried the ban as “racist and backwards.”

Hosam Elattar / Voice of OC

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Morning, Trojan is an Annenberg Media product. Tomoki Chien is the founding editor, Anna Hsu curates weekday reporting and Chris Bibona writes the Monday sports section. Questions, concerns or feedback? Just reply to this email.

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