1994Final results
1994 election for California Senate District 40
California State Senate · California
Steve Peace (D) won with 48.0% of the vote, defeating Joe Ghougassian (R) by 3.0 points.
Steve PeaceDemocrat · winner
48.0%77,211
Joe GhougassianRepublican
45.1%72,410
Elena Smith PelayoPeace and Freedom
3.9%6,347
Ben GibbsLibertarian
3.0%4,758
160,726 votes
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET
The seat over time
D − R margin in this seat's races around 1994
Races before and after
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET
The candidates
Steve Peace (D)Joe Ghougassian (R)
Also on the ballot: Elena Smith Pelayo (Peace and Freedom), 3.9%; Ben Gibbs (Libertarian), 3.0%