eBay Meg bitchslapped by Governor Moonbeam

Meg Whitman's expensive bid for the governorship of California has failed: she lost out to Jerry Brown - aka "Governor Moonbeam" - who last held the job in 1975.

Democrat Brown, previously the youngest person to hold the state's top job, is now the oldest elected governor. He inherits a state with serious budget problems.

And at least one supposed saviour to the state's deficit has been ruled out. Voters rejected "Proposition 19" which aimed to tax the commercial cultivation and sale of marijuana.

Prop 19 was turned down by 56 per cent to 44 per cent of voters. Weed remains legal in the state for personal use, provided you have a doctor's note.

Whitman spent $140m on her campaign, $119m of it from her own pocket - which would win a lot of auctions at the online tat bazaar eBay which she used to run.

Former HP chief Carly Fiorina also lost out in a similarly pricey battle for a Californian Senate seat. She was beaten by Democrat Barbara Boxer, who said it was the roughest and toughest campaign of her life.

Some of the Tea Party's more fruitcakey candidates also lost out - anti-masturbator and one-time witch Christine O'Donnell conceded defeat but said: "Our voices were heard, and we're not going to be quiet now. This is the just the beginning."

Overall, at the time of writing, it looks as though the Democrats will just keep control of the Senate, but the party has lost the House of Representatives to the Republicans.

Results are still coming in - the Beeb's full election results map is here. ®