California Assemblyman Kevin Kiley has a 9,000-plus vote lead on Dr. Kermit Jones to serve District 3 in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Unofficial election results with 100% of the district’s 787 precincts partially reporting give Kiley 76,989 votes and Jones 67,972, according to information published on the California Secretary of State Office’s website as of 9:44 a.m. Nov. 9. Not all ballots have been counted; elections offices still have to tally ballots postmarked on or before Nov. 8 that had not been received as of election night as well as provisional ballots.

“It’s looking good. We currently have a 6.2% lead and are optimistic the margin will increase as more votes are counted,” Kiley shared in a message sent Wednesday afternoon.

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On election night, Kiley told a news reporter, “I just want to say thank you to everyone who participated; whether you voted for me or not, thank you very much for participating in the process. I couldn’t be more excited about the opportunity to represent this district. It is an amazing district and covers some of the greatest parts of our state.”

Kiley grew up in the area and said he appreciates all those who helped get his campaign “across the finish line.” He was first elected to the California State Assembly in 2016 and has twice been re-elected. Prior to that he worked as an attorney and an educator.

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“All we can do is wait and see where the chips fall,” he concluded.

That was a sentiment echoed by challenger Jones, who issued an election night statement: “Right now, it’s too early to call the outcome of our race. And that is OK – we are going to wait this out and give all of the hardworking election officials time to count every single ballot because we all believe in democracy and the opportunity for each of us to have our voices heard.”

The family doctor and Navy veteran thanked his volunteers and supporters for their assistance during the campaign.

“In a combat zone you don’t spend your time worrying about your differences; you work together to get the job done and keep each other safe. That’s the energy we had during this campaign and that’s the energy I hope to bring to Washington,” he states.

“Now, tonight is not the immediate victory we were hoping for but a little patience never killed any of us,” the Democratic candidate continues. “Our team is closely watching the results and we will keep everyone informed about what to expect.”

District 3 includes all or parts of Placer, Sacramento, Nevada, El Dorado, Plumas, Inyo, Mono, Yuba, Sierra and Alpine counties. As a member of the California Assembly, Kiley currently represents more than 67% of the voters in the new congressional district, his campaign website states.