The AP called the race at 8:53 p.m. Tuesday, KQED reported. McGuire had 57% (88,089 votes) to Gallagher's 42.9% (66,369) with about half the expected vote counted. ABC7 showed the same totals.
Gallagher won a June special election to finish the term of Rep. Doug LaMalfa, who died in January. But KQED notes Prop 50 redrew the district from solidly Republican to solidly Democratic for November, creating what some called a seat "tailor-made" for McGuire, the former state Senate leader from the North Coast.
Assembly District 12
Next door in the North Bay, Democrat Jackie Elward led fellow Democrat Eric Lucan 56.6% to 43.3% for the open Assembly District 12 seat covering Marin and part of Sonoma, per KQED. KQED describes the race as a labor-versus-business proxy fight, with unions behind Elward and tech and business interests backing Lucan. The seat opened when Assemblymember Damon Connolly ran for state Senate.
All results are unofficial election-night and early-morning counts as of Wednesday, Nov. 4. Counties keep counting mail and provisional ballots for days, and certification comes later, so margins can shift, especially in close contests.