The June 2 primary results for Assembly District 16 are final. A voter-requested recount of the race, which includes Orinda, Moraga, and Lafayette among ten communities, was abandoned after just two days when the person who requested it stopped paying the required daily deposit, the Contra Costa County Clerk-Recorder-Elections Department announced Friday, July 10.
Incumbent Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan, a Democrat from Orinda, won the primary with 70,050 votes (66.4%), according to results certified by the Secretary of State's office. Republican Joseph A. Rubay finished second with 31,564 votes (29.92%). Both advance to the November general election under California's top-two system.
Third-place finisher Chirag Kathrani, a San Ramon entrepreneur who ran under the No Party Preference designation, received 3,877 votes (3.68%). The county notified Kathrani of the recount as required by law. The identity of the person who requested and funded the recount has not been publicly disclosed.
How the recount worked
County Clerk-Recorder and Registrar of Voters Kristin B. Connelly's office conducted the recount at 555 Escobar St. in Martinez over two days, Tuesday, July 7, and Wednesday, July 8.
On Day 1, staff created batch manifests, printed and organized ballot images, reconciled those images, and built logs and forms. On Day 2, Recount Boards manually tallied ballots from 18 prioritized precincts.
A third day had been scheduled for additional ballot-image printing and reconciliation. It never happened.
At the end of Day 2, the requestor told the county they wanted to stop. When no deposit arrived before Day 3, the county terminated the process.
Why the results didn't change
Under California Election Code Section 15632, any recount that does not count votes in every precinct in the jurisdiction is declared null and void. Because only 18 of the district's precincts were tallied, the partial recount carried no legal weight. The original certified results stand.
Assembly District 16 covers Orinda, Moraga, Lafayette, Walnut Creek, Alamo, Danville, Dublin, Livermore, Pleasanton, and San Ramon.
What's next
Bauer-Kahan and Rubay will face off in the Tuesday, November 3, 2026, general election. Certified results for the June 2 primary are available at www.contracostavote.gov and the California Secretary of State's elections results page. Residents with questions can reach the Elections Division at 925-335-7800.
