Eleni Kounalakis wins California treasurer race, AP says

Democrat Eleni Kounalakis, California’s lieutenant governor, won the state treasurer’s race against Republican Jennifer Hawks, according to an Associated Press race call reported by CalMatters.

Unofficial results from the California Secretary of State showed Kounalakis with 5,174,993 votes, or 64.4%, and Hawks with 2,862,559 votes, or 35.6%. The results, updated at 9:23 a.m. PST Thursday, Nov. 5, showed all 23,860 precincts partially reporting. The count is not complete.

Kounalakis led by 2,312,434 votes, or 28.8 percentage points, out of 8,037,552 votes counted in that update.

What was at stake

The state treasurer serves as California’s chief banker, managing the state’s cash, overseeing investments and handling state borrowing and debt, according to the State Treasurer’s Office. The treasurer also chairs the Tax Credit Allocation Committee, which awards tax credits for affordable housing.

The key issues:

• Housing finance: In a GrowSF candidate questionnaire, Kounalakis said she would focus on changes to the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program and simpler bond financing to help affordable housing projects get built faster.
• Fiscal management: Kounalakis said in the same questionnaire that she would aim to keep the state’s debt-service-to-General Fund revenue ratio at or below 6% and protect California’s credit ratings.
• Accountability: Hawks’ campaign website called for closer scrutiny of public spending to identify fraud and waste. She ran on a platform of oversight and accountability for state finances.

The treasurer sits as an ex officio member of the CalPERS and CalSTRS pension boards, giving the office a voice in how retirement funds for millions of public employees are invested, according to the State Treasurer’s Office.

A little history

Kounalakis has served two terms as lieutenant governor since 2019. She is the first woman elected to that office. Before her government service, she worked at housing development firm AKT Development for 18 years, including as its president. She later served as U.S. ambassador to Hungary under President Barack Obama, according to her official biography.

CalMatters reported in May that she initially ran for governor before switching to the treasurer’s race.

Hawks, a Republican, has not held elected office. CalMatters described her as a Silicon Valley retiree. She was endorsed by the California Republican Party, according to her campaign website.

The seat is open. Fiona Ma, the current treasurer and a Democrat, won the lieutenant governor’s race, according to an AP call reported by CalMatters.

What’s next

The results remain unofficial until the canvass and certification are complete. The California Secretary of State lists Dec. 11 as the state certification date. County registrars will continue to process and count ballots in the weeks following the election, including mail ballots postmarked by Election Day and received by Nov. 10. The treasurer’s term is four years.

California treasurer election results

Source: California Secretary of State. Results as of 9:23 a.m. PST Nov. 5, 2026. All 23,860 precincts were partially reporting; ballots remain to be counted. These totals are unofficial. AP’s race call is separate from official certification.