Who will control the US House? Uncalled races in Southern California play a big role

Control of the House is still too close to call, according to the Associated Press. There are a lot of outstanding votes in western states, like California, where there are multiple competitive races.

Democrats need a net gain of 4 seats to win the majority.

• Democrats have so far flipped 4 seats and are leading in 1 other of the 10 remaining Republican-held competitive seats.

• Republicans have flipped 3 and are leading in 2 of the 10 remaining Democratic-held competitive seats.

If that all holds, Democrats would be +5 and Republicans +5 for a 0 net gain for either party.

That would mean, Republicans would keep the House with a 4-seat majority, which is their current margin.

There are lots of very close margins, as the table below shows. The seats to keep an eye on are Colorado District 8, Arizona District 6, California Districts 21, 27 and 47:

A closer look at tight SoCal races

LAist has been keeping a close eye on tight races in California, four here in Southern California.

As more mail-in ballots are tallied in Orange County, the latest totals have Vice President Kamala Harris ahead of President-elect Donald J. Trump by a razor's margin. In earlier vote counts, Trump was ahead.

And the competitive congressional races have tightened.

• In District 47, Democrat Dave Min remains slightly ahead of incumbent Rep. Scott Baugh (R) by less than 1% of the vote so far.
• In District 45, challenger Derek Tran (D) has gained ground daily against incumbent Rep. Michelle Steel (R). Her lead was down to about 3,900 votes as of Monday.
• And in District 27, Democrat George Whitesides pulled ahead of incumbent Mike Garcia (R) for a narrow victory. Garcia conceded the race Monday calling his time in Congress "the honor of a lifetime." Whitesides used the same language to thank supporters for electing him.

According to numbers released by O.C. election officials on Monday, about 212,000 votes remain to be tallied there — that does not include additional mail-in ballots postmarked by Election Day which can arrive by Nov. 12.

— Megan Garvey

District 24: Levin vs. Gunderson

Notes on the district: Stretching from southern Orange County down to San Diego, the district include Camp Pendleton. More than half the residents are white and about 25% are Latino.

Voter registration: 36.4% Democratic, 33.4% Republican, 23.0% no party preference

District 27: Whitesides vs. Garcia

Notes on the district: Based in northern Los Angeles County, the district is home to the Antelope Valley and includes the high desert cities of Santa Clarita, Palmdale and Lancaster as well as parts of the city of Los Angeles. The district also hosts multiple aerospace manufacturing companies and defense contractors. Hispanic residents account for almost half of the district’s population.

Voter registration: 40.7% Democratic, 30.1% Republican, 21.5% no party preference

District 41: Rollins vs. Calvert

Notes on the district: The Inland Empire district located in western Riverside County is home to the heavily Democratic city of Palm Springs, famous for electing the nation’s first all-LGBTQ city council. But it also includes the swing city of Corona and more Republican parts of the county. The once-deeply conservative district has shifted left over the years, partly due to an increasingly diverse population, including Los Angeles transplants, and the redistricting in 2021.

Voter registration: 36.3% Democratic, 37.0% Republican, 18.6% no party preference

District 45: Tran vs. Steel

Notes on the district: The C-shaped district is located largely in northwestern Orange County, but also stretches into L.A. County (where at least 529,000 ballots countywide remain to be counted). It covers cities including Garden Grove and Buena Park and is home to Little Saigon, the largest Vietnamese enclave outside Vietnam itself. Asian Americans — who make up 36% of the district population — are a key voting bloc. Latino and white people each account for roughly a third of the district. This race is the most expensive in the nation with more than $48 million invested.

Voter registration: 37.3% Democratic, 33.0% Republican, 24.0% no party preference

District 47: Min vs. Baugh

Notes on the district: Running along the coastline of south Orange County, this district contains the Democratic city of Irvine as well as GOP-leaning cities such as Huntington Beach and Newport Beach. More than half of the residents are white, while Asians account for nearly a quarter of the population.

Voter registration: 35.0% Democratic, 35.0% Republican, 23.7% no party preference

Information about the districts courtesy of LAist partner CalMatters.