A spokesman for the campaign for Democratic Assembly candidate Alyson Huber said the mood was cautiously optimistic after Huber took the vote-count lead in AD-10 late Tuesday from Republican Jack Sieglock.

"It's been a long process," said spokesman Andrew Acosta. "But I think it's better to be up at this point."

Huber, an attorney from El Dorado Hills, had a 506-vote lead over Lodi businessman and former elected official Sieglock as of 11:33 a.m. Wednesday.

Acosta said there were a number of possibilities that could explain Huber's late surge, after trailing Sieglock consistently since Election Day.

Huber received a surge of late-count ballots from her base in Sacramento County, Acosta said, but also did better than expected in Sieglock's base of San Joaquin County.

Sieglock campaign officials had said that a mysterious robocall in the early evening on Election Day suppressed GOP voter turnout in competitive districts like AD-10, and some believe Barack Obama's strong showing in California that day may have helped Huber more than any other candidate.

Acosta said he couldn't say what the deciding factor was, adding, "The old saying is that victory has many fathers, but defeat is an orphan."

He added that Huber's campaign would not make a formal victory statement until the counties certify their vote next month, though some observers have said there aren't enough outstanding ballots for Sieglock to catch up.

A new state legislature that would include Huber or Sieglock is set to be sworn in Monday.

Sieglock's campaign did not immediately return a call for comment Wednesday.

ELSEWHERE on PolitickerCA.com:

• Huber takes lead in AD-10, McClintock lead grows in CA-04
• McClintock lead slightly less, Sieglock also still ahead
• Brown camp says McClintock victory not assured