| Election Name: | 2020 California State Senate election |
| Country: | California |
| Type: | legislative |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 2018 California State Senate election |
| Previous Year: | 2018 |
| Next Election: | 2022 California State Senate election |
| Next Year: | 2022 |
| Seats For Election: | 20 seats from odd-numbered districts in the California State Senate |
| Majority Seats: | 21 |
| Leader1: | Toni Atkins |
| Party1: | California Democratic Party |
| Leaders Seat1: | 39th–San Diego |
| Last Election1: | 29 |
| Seats After1: | 31 |
| Seat Change1: | 2 |
| Popular Vote1: | 3,274,204 |
| Percentage1: | 71.23% |
| Leader2: | Shannon Grove |
| Party2: | California Republican Party |
| Leaders Seat2: | 16th–Bakersfield |
| Last Election2: | 11 |
| Seats After2: | 9 |
| Seat Change2: | 2 |
| Popular Vote2: | 1,218,374 |
| Percentage2: | 26.51% |
| Map Size: | 450px |
| President pro tempore | |
| Posttitle: | President pro tempore |
| Before Election: | Toni Atkins |
| Before Party: | California Democratic Party |
| After Election: | Toni Atkins |
| After Party: | Democratic |
The 2020 California State Senate election was held on Tuesday, November 3, 2020, with the primary election scheduled for March 3, 2020. Voters in the 20 odd-numbered districts of the California State Senate elected their representatives. The elections coincided with the elections for other offices, including for U.S. President and the state assembly.
| Source | Ranking | As of | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| align=left | The Cook Political Report[1] | October 21, 2020 | ||
| align=left | Sabato's Crystal Ball[2] | May 7, 2020 |
| 2020 California State Senate election Primary election – March 3, 2020 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Votes | Percentage | Candidates | Advancing to general | Seats contesting | ||
| Democratic | 3,274,204 | 71.23% | 38 | 23 | 20 | ||
| Republican | 1,218,374 | 26.51% | 22 | 15 | 15 | ||
| No party preference | 62,094 | 1.35% | 5 | 0 | 0 | ||
| American Independent | 34,253 | 0.75% | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Libertarian | 7,036 | 0.15% | 4 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Green | 530 | 0.01% | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Totals | 4,596,491 | 100.00% | 61 | 40 | — | ||
| 2020 California State Senate election General election – November 3, 2020[3] | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Votes | % | Before | Up | Won | After | +/– | ||
| Democratic | 5,795,870 | 66.09 | 29 | 15 | 17 | 31 | 2 | ||
| Republican | 2,831,711 | 32.29 | 11 | 5 | 3 | 9 | 2 | ||
| American Independent | 89,080 | 1.02 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| Libertarian | 53,256 | 0.61 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| Totals | 8,769,917 | 100.00 | 40 | 20 | 20 | 40 | — | ||
See also: California's 1st State Senate district. The 1st district stretches along the eastern edge of the state from the Oregon border to the Lake Tahoe area, wrapping around the Sacramento Valley along the northern Sierra Nevada to the eastern Sacramento suburbs. The incumbent is Republican Brian Dahle, who was elected in a special election with 53.9% of the vote in 2019.[4]
See also: California's 3rd State Senate district. The 3rd district encompasses the northern San Francisco Bay Area and the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta regions. It includes parts of the North Bay, Wine Country, and the Sacramento Valley. The incumbent is Democrat Bill Dodd, who was elected with 58.1% of the vote in 2016.[6]
See also: California's 5th State Senate district. The 5th district is centered on the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta and forms the gateway between the Central Valley, the San Francisco Bay Area, the Sacramento metropolitan area, and Gold Country. The incumbent is Democrat Cathleen Galgiani, who is term-limited and cannot run for reelection.
See also: California's 7th State Senate district. The 7th district is located in the East Bay east of the Berkeley Hills, taking in suburban and bedroom communities of San Francisco Bay Area. The incumbent is Democrat Steve Glazer, who was re-elected with 66.7% of the vote in 2016.
See also: California's 9th State Senate district. The 9th district encompasses the northern East Bay, stretching along the eastern shores of San Francisco Bay and San Pablo Bay. The incumbent is Democrat Nancy Skinner, who was elected with 62.2% of the vote in 2016.
See also: California's 11th State Senate district. The 11th district encompasses the northern San Francisco Peninsula, including the consolidated city-county of San Francisco and northern San Mateo County. The incumbent is Democrat Scott Wiener, who was elected with 51.0% of the vote in 2016.
See also: California's 13th State Senate district. The 13th district encompasses the San Francisco Peninsula and the northwestern reaches of Silicon Valley. The incumbent is Democrat Jerry Hill, who is term-limited and cannot run for reelection.
See also: California's 15th State Senate district. The 15th district encompasses most of Silicon Valley, centered around San Jose. The incumbent is Democrat Jim Beall, who is term-limited and cannot run for reelection.
See also: California's 17th State Senate district. The 17th district encompasses the extreme southern parts of the San Francisco Bay Area and northern Central Coast centering on the coastal Monterey Bay Area. The incumbent is Democrat Bill Monning, who is term-limited and cannot run for reelection.
See also: California's 19th State Senate district. The 19th district takes in the southern Central Coast, including all of Santa Barbara County and western Ventura County. The incumbent is Democrat Hannah-Beth Jackson, who is term-limited and cannot run for reelection.
See also: California's 21st State Senate district. The 21st district takes in northern Los Angeles County and parts of the High Desert including, the Antelope Valley, Victor Valley, and most of the Santa Clarita Valley. The incumbent is Republican Scott Wilk, who was elected with 52.8% of the vote in 2016.
See also: California's 23rd State Senate district. The 23rd district encompasses a wide arc of the Inland Empire, circling clockwise from Rancho Cucamonga in the northwest to Menifee in the south. It also includes several resort communities in the San Bernardino Mountains and a sliver of the High Desert. The incumbent is Republican Mike Morrell, who is term-limited and cannot run for reelection.
See also: California's 25th State Senate district. The 25th district encompasses the San Gabriel Mountains and its adjacent San Gabriel Valley foothill communities, anchored by Glendale and Pasadena. The incumbent is Democrat Anthony Portantino, who was elected with 57.8% of the vote in 2016.
See also: California's 27th State Senate district. The 27th district takes in the Conejo Valley, parts of the San Fernando Valley, and a slice of the Santa Clarita Valley, including most of Los Angeles's western suburbs, as well as Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks. The incumbent is Democrat Henry Stern, who was elected with 55.9% of the vote in 2016.
See also: California's 29th State Senate district. The 29th district straddles the intersection of Los Angeles County, Orange County, and San Bernardino County. It encompasses the northern Santa Ana Valley, including western and central Anaheim, Fullerton, and Yorba Linda. The incumbent is Republican Ling Ling Chang, who was elected in a special election with 33.8% of the vote in 2018.[33]
See also: California's 31st State Senate district. The 31st district takes in northwestern Riverside County, including Corona, Moreno Valley, and Riverside. The incumbent is Democrat Richard Roth, who was re-elected with 60.5% of the vote in 2016.
See also: California's 33rd State Senate district. The 33rd district encompasses a strip of the Gateway Cities, stretching from parts of eastern Los Angeles to the coast, including the Port of Long Beach and a significant portion of Long Beach itself. The incumbent is Democrat Lena Gonzalez, who was elected in a special election with 69.8% of the vote in 2019.[36]
See also: California's 35th State Senate district. The 35th district takes in the inland portions of the South Bay stretching from Inglewood in the north down to the Port of Los Angeles and the San Pedro neighborhood of Los Angeles. The incumbent is Democrat Steven Bradford, who was elected with 53.5% of the vote in 2016.
See also: California's 37th State Senate district. The 37th district encompasses central Orange County, centered on eastern Anaheim and Irvine. The incumbent is Republican John Moorlach, who was re-elected with 57.0% of the vote in 2016.
See also: California's 39th State Senate district. The 39th district is centered on Downtown San Diego and mainly stretches along the city's coastline, including part of San Diego Bay.The incumbent is Democrat State Senate President pro tempore Toni Atkins, who was elected with 62.5% of the vote in 2016.