As heavy favorite for Senate, Padilla helps other Democrats

By ELLIOT SPAGAT
Associated Press

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Alex Padilla ended his campaign to remain California’s junior senator the way he began _ trying to generate support for fellow Democrats in other races. It was a show of how comfortable he felt as the overwhelming favorite against his Republican opponent, constitutional lawyer Mark Meuser, in a rematch like their 2018 race for California secretary of state. In an odd twist, voters cast ballots twice for senator in this election: once to fill the last two months of Kamala Harris’ term and the other for a new six-year term. Padilla resigned during his second term as California secretary of state to become the state’s first Latino U.S. senator.