Three big-name Democrats crashed out of California’s governor’s race overnight as the state’s bruising primary left Xavier Becerra and Republican Steve Hilton on track for a November showdown.

Rep. Katie Porter, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa all conceded after failing to break through in the crowded race to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Their departures capped a brutal night for the Democratic also-rans, who were squeezed between Becerra’s late surge, billionaire Tom Steyer’s self-funded push and Republicans rallying behind Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco.

Mahan conceded shortly after polls closed, ending the San Jose mayor’s longshot bid as early results showed him stuck well outside the top tier.

Porter conceded Tuesday night in a video posted to YouTube, telling supporters she was “so incredibly proud of the campaign that we built together” while acknowledging she would not make it to November.

Villaraigosa also dropped out overnight, posting a statement to X saying the night “didn’t turn out the way we hoped” while congratulating the candidates who advanced.

“So I’m not stepping aside from the cause, only from the race,” the former LA mayor said. “California is worth fighting for — and I’m not done fighting.”

Becerra and Hilton were nearly tied at the top as early results rolled in, several points ahead of Steyer and Bianco.

Becerra began the campaign so far behind that he was left off the debate stage, but his late rise now puts him in position to become the presumptive November favorite in deep-blue California.

Hilton’s showing, meanwhile, guarantees Republicans a spot in the general election — setting up at least one clear contest between the Democratic status quo and a GOP voice for change.

Rep. Katie Porter conceded her bid for governor Tuesday night, telling supporters in a video posted to YouTube that she would not make it to the November general election.

While votes were still being counted, Porter acknowledged the writing was on the wall. By 10 p.m. Tuesday, she was running a distant fifth in the crowded race.

“As I look back on this race, I am so incredibly proud of the campaign that we built together,” Porter said.

“Together, we talked about the issues that were important to California, particularly affordability and bringing down costs, including making housing the top issue in our campaign because it’s the top expense for most California families.”

A proposed countywide half-cent sales tax increase to fund healthcare services is struggling in early election returns Tuesday night, with voters so far rejecting the measure.

Measure ER, known as the Essential Services Restoration Act, asks voters to approve a half-cent increase in the county’s general sales tax for five years.

County officials estimate the measure would generate roughly $1 billion annually to help sustain healthcare services.

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Thad Kousser, a political science professor at UC San Diego, told The Post that Republicans are having a strong night in the primary election, but he cautioned pumped the brakes on talk of a red wave.

Steve Hilton, a former Fox News host, was leading a tight race with Xavier Becerra in the govenror's race, while Spencer Pratt made a strong showing with a pending second-place finish in the Los Angeles mayor's race.

"I think we’ll have to be patient as more votes are counted, because the remaining votes are likely to be more Democratic-leaning," Kousser told The Post. "Many Democrats held on to their ballots until the last few days, for strategic reasons, and as those votes are counted, the results could shift leftward,"

But the early returns "remind us is that, even in blue California, the Republican Party still has significant strength, typically winning 40 percent of the vote," Kousser said.

"This is, after all, the state in which Donald Trump won the most votes. If the field narrows to a race between one Democrat and one Republican in the fall, either statewide or in LA, that’s when the Democratic majority will make the road to general election victory much tougher for Hilton or Pratt."

There was no love for doomed San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan even in his own hometown.

Returns from Santa Clara County, which is home to San Jose, show Mahan with a measly 10% of votes in the Silicon Valley enclave.

Xavier Becerra was leading in the county with 29% as of Tuesday evening, followed by Hilton at 23% and Tom Steyer at 21%.

Mahan quickly conceded after results came out.

The tech-friendly mayor quickly racked up support from business bigwigs like Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings, but failed to gain traction with the public. He had less than 5% of votes statewide as of Tuesday evening.

California Republican Party Chairwoman Corrin Rankin said that early returns in the governor’s race showed promising signs for Republicans, suggesting Steve Hilton’s performance could point to a broader hunger for change in deep-blue California.

“It's looking really promising,” Rankin told The Post. “Just some of the early data that's come in looks like Steve Hilton may have won Napa County, which is a blue county."

Early returns showed Hilton 27.22% of the vote, edging former Biden administration health secretary Xavier Becerra with 26.29%.

"I think it's incredibly noteworthy, because if he won Napa, which is a blue county, that says a lot about how much change Californians are looking for,” Rankin said.

Hilton, the Republican former Fox News host, was running near the top of the crowded field Tuesday night and appeared on track to advance to the November runoff against Becerra.

Rankin said Hilton’s message of change could resonate against Becerra, whom Republicans are already framing as an establishment Democrat tied to the state’s political status quo.

“The fact that [Gov.] Gavin Newsom hasn't endorsed him, [former President] Joe Biden hasn't endorsed him — nobody's endorsed him. I think there's something there, and we're going to end up finding out what it is."

Rankin also weighed in on Spencer Pratt’s surprisingly strong showing in the Los Angeles mayor’s race, saying he was a registered Republican despite running in a nonpartisan contest.

“It's going to be up to us to earn the votes of the people who did not vote for Karen Bass, try to go out and collect those votes, try to increase Republican turnout, so that we can add more votes to his tally. ... Up until the general, there's gonna be a lot more excitement in LA.”

Democrat Sacramento city councilwoman Mai Vang — who has infuriated local residents by her refusal to say the Pledge of Allegiance while turning her back on the US flag — was trailing Tuesday night in her bid to unseat longtime Congresswoman Doris Matsui in a bitter primary fight.

Matsui led early Tuesday with 28,950 votes, or 32.6%, while Vang was in second with 22,821 votes, or 25.7%, according to the Associated Press.

Republican Zachariah Wooden was close behind in third with 20,079 votes, or 22.6%, leaving him within striking distance of Vang as the vote count continues.

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Spencer Pratt chatted with friends and supporters, posing for photos inside his watch party at Don Antonio’s, where hundreds of people were in attendance.

The former reality star was spotted smiling and taking photos with friends at his party in West Los Angeles on Tuesday evening.

The most recent numbers have Pratt in second place behind incumbent Mayor Karen Bass, with a comfortable lead over Nithya Raman in a distant third.

If the results hold, Pratt will square off against Bass in the runoff this November.

Steve Hilton, who was narrowly leading in early returns for the California governor's race Tuesday night, told The Post that he's confident he'll advance to the November runoff.

“The words that I wrote for the backdrop on our stage tonight are now very much real: 'Change is coming,'" Hilton said.

"I think this state is ready for change, and tonight's results show that I think that we're not taking anything for granted."

Hilton, a Republican former Fox News host, was running near the top of the crowded field, fending off former Biden administration health secretary Xavier Becerra for first place in the top-two primary.

Asked about a potential November matchup with Becerra, Hilton sounded bullish.

“Well, he's the living embodiment of more of the same in an election where 56% of Californians — according to The Post’s poll last week — think the state's going in the wrong direction and needs change. He's the opposite of what Californians want."

Hilton said his message in the general election would focus on pocketbook issues and quality-of-life concerns rather than partisan labels in a heavily Democratic state.

“Whether you're a Republican, a Democrat, an independent, we all know that California needs change," he said.

"I'm the only candidate in this race who's offering change, and it's change in a very positive, practical way. Your first $100,000 income tax-free, $3 gas, cut your electric bills in half, a home you can afford to buy — simple, positive things that everyone can get behind, not partisan, not ideological, just common sense change.

"That's what this state desperately needs, and that's what I'm offering.”

Progressive Bay Area Congressman Ro Khanna (D-Fremont) declared victory over election challengers and billionaires in his House primary race after early returns showed him with nearly 60% of the vote, likely allowing him to avoid a runoff in November.

"Tonight, we showed that you can stand up to billionaires in the heart of Silicon Valley and prevail," Khanna wrote on social media.

Khanna has been aggressively supporting the controversial billionaires tax that has led to many of California's wealthiest residents to flee the state.

"When I supported a billionaire tax, the tech lords recruited a candidate to primary me and spent $1 million on false attacks," Khanna said. "They predicted an 'end' to my career.

"The results speak for themselves. The progressive movement can win anywhere!"

Khanna's competition in the race included two Republicans and tech entrepreneur Ethan Agarwal, a Democrat who once got sued for downloading too much porn.

While Karen Bass is off to a hot start, experts remain skeptical she can hit 50%.

"It seems unlikely that she can get all the way to 50 percent, but she sounded like a candidate who knew that she’s had a much better night than she and her team had been expected. If Pratt’s numbers hold up, this is the matchup that she wanted," Dan Schnur, political analyst told The California Post.

Schnur said while Nithya Raman sounded "pretty down," he thinks she hasn't "given up."

Raman, who is currently in 3rd place, addressed supporters Tuesday night and thanked everyone who helped “this little campaign grow.” She presented a message of hope, saying just a few months are her campaign was “a long shot.”

Raman, who was the last candidate to enter the Los Angeles mayor’s race, reiterated her vision for LA — a city that is “affordable enough so it’s still a city of real opportunity.” The city councilmember said she has fought back against the “MAGA machine” and “we stand up against ICE.”

Thousands of California Democrats cast ballots for Eric Swalwell even though the disgraced ex-congressman’s zombie campaign for governor was suspended after allegations of rape and sexual assault.

With 42.0% of precincts partially reporting Tuesday night, Swalwell had drawn 15,221 votes, or 0.4%, in the crowded race to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom, according to the California Secretary of State’s Office.

It’s unclear why so many Californians decided to light their ballots on fire, as the votes amounted to wasted trees in California’s top-two primary, especially after Swalwell suspended his campaign and resigned from Congress after a series of women — including former staffers — accused him of sexual misconduct.

Swalwell, an East Bay Democrat and once-prominent critic of President Trump, suspended his campaign after two bombshell reports by the San Francisco Chronicle and CNN detailed disturbing allegations. Swalwell denied any wrongdoing while admitting to extramartial affairs, calling the incidents “mistakes in judgment.”

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