Jack Sieglock's nameplate unceremoniously was stripped by Capitol staffers and hurriedly replaced by Alyson Huber's outside a fifth-floor Assembly office Wednesday.

Perhaps that said it all.

Huber, who wasn't even invited to the Assembly's orientation session two weeks ago, rode a stunning last-minute turnaround in ballot counting to capture the 10th District seat.

"It's just starting to sink in," Huber said after it became clear Wednesday that Sieglock could not overtake her 505-vote lead because fewer than 300 absentee or provisional ballots remained uncounted.

The Democrat will succeed termed-out Alan Nakanishi, R-Lodi, representing Amador and portions of Sacramento, El Dorado and San Joaquin counties.

Huber's victory will give Democrats a three-seat gain in the Assembly when the new class is sworn in Monday. Republicans will be outnumbered 51-29, three votes shy of a supermajority.

"The tenacity she showed in this hard-fought election – the same tenacity she's displayed throughout her life, is going to be a valuable asset to the Assembly," Assembly Speaker Karen Bass said in a written statement.

Sieglock, who led the ballot count for more than three weeks – from Election Day until Tuesday night – said he was very disappointed but that Huber's lead is insurmountable barring "divine intervention."

"I don't believe, mathematically, that the numbers are there," said Sieglock, a former Lodi councilman and San Joaquin County supervisor.

Sieglock expressed gratitude to friends and supporters – wishing everyone a happy Thanksgiving – then took a parting shot at Democrats.

"I really hope they don't raise taxes because I think that's the wrong medicine for California," he said.

The 10th Assembly District race was one of about a half-dozen fiercely competitive legislative races statewide.

Huber said her last-minute defeat of Sieglock was due largely to a block of 3,704 Sacramento County votes that were counted Tuesday and favored her by roughly 60 percent to 40 percent.

Overall, Huber won handily in Sacramento County, capturing 53 percent of the vote. She lost to Sieglock in Amador, El Dorado and San Joaquin counties.

Libertarian Janice Bonser garnered 7 percent of the vote in the 10th District, which stretches from northern Stockton to Rancho Cordova.

Huber, a business attorney who never before has held public office, benefited from heavy Democratic Party support and from nearly $1.4 million spent by labor unions to promote her candidacy.

Courtni Pugh, of Service Employees International Union, California's largest civil service union, made it clear Wednesday that Huber will be counted upon as an ally.

"Because of our members' extraordinary work, we are now in a better position to create the changes working Californians need in order to fix our budget, provide increased access to affordable health care and fund our schools," Pugh said in a written statement.

Sieglock's campaign was bolstered by the Republican Party and by the California Medical Association, which spent $50,000 on his behalf.

Voter registration in the 10th Assembly District has been swinging to the left in recent years, with the number of Democrats and Republicans now roughly equal, records show.

"I grew up in this district, and I know these voters," said Huber, an El Dorado Hills resident who was raised in Lodi. "They care more about the person and the issues that you'll fight for than they do about whether you're a Republican or a Democrat."

Huber conceded that it's not ideal to take office while the state is fighting a projected $27.8 billion revenue shortfall over 19 months.

"It's true that we're in challenging times right now, but I look forward to doing the job I was elected to do, which was to tackle some of those challenging problems," she said.

Huber, saying she had not participated in legislative discussion, declined to comment on whether she would have supported the Democrats' $17 billion package of tax hikes and budget cuts that died Tuesday in the Legislature.

Wayne Johnson, president of JohnsonClark Associates, which helped run Sieglock's campaign, said it is unlikely that Huber's vote count will be challenged if the 500-vote margin holds steady.

Johnson said no final decision has been made pending discussion with Assembly Republican leader Mike Villines and the Assembly Republican Caucus. "In deference to those guys, we need to let them weigh in on it," Johnson said.

Villines could not be reached for comment.

Call Jim Sanders, Bee Capitol Bureau, (916) 326-5538.