November 4, 2014 2018 → 53.63% 46.37% | 3,799,711 3,285,334 | |
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The 2014 California Secretary of State election was held on November 4, 2014, to elect the Secretary of State of California. Incumbent Democratic Secretary of State Debra Bowen was term limited and ineligible to run for re-election to a third term in office.
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A primary election was held on June 3, 2014. Under California's nonpartisan blanket primary law, all candidates appear on the same ballot, regardless of party. In the primary, voters may vote for any candidate, regardless of their party affiliation. The top two finishers — regardless of party — advance to the general election in November, even if a candidate manages to receive a majority of the votes cast in the primary election. Washington is the only other state with this system, a so-called "top two primary" (Louisiana has a similar "jungle primary").
Democrat Alex Padilla and Republican Pete Peterson finished first and second, respectively, and contested the general election, which Padilla won.