President Donald Trump is raising alarms over California’s notoriously slow vote-counting process, accusing Democrats of trying to “steal” key races as ballots continue to trickle in days after Election Day.
With final results in both the Los Angeles mayoral contest and the race to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom potentially still days or even weeks away, Trump blasted Democrats Wednesday night and alleged wrongdoing without providing evidence.
“There’s BIG cheating by the Dumocrats in California,” the president wrote on Truth Social.
“Votes are all tied up. May not be in for weeks. Under investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles.”
It remains unclear whether Trump ordered or requested any investigation. Newsweek reported that it contacted both the White House and the Los Angeles U.S. Attorney’s Office for additional information.
Trump later doubled down, claiming Democrats were attempting to push Republican candidates out of contention in California’s unique jungle primary system, in which all candidates appear on the same ballot and the top two finishers advance to November regardless of party affiliation.
“They are trying to STEAL THE GOVERNOR OF CALIFORNIA PRIMARY, AND THE MAYOR OF LOS ANGELES, PRIMARY, AWAY FROM TWO GREAT REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES,” Trump wrote.
“Here we go with the very late and massive numbers of MAIL IN BALLOTS.”
According to The Associated Press, Republican Steve Hilton and Democrat Xavier Becerra currently occupy the top two spots in the race to succeed Newsom, though millions of ballots remain to be processed.
In Los Angeles, incumbent Mayor Karen Bass is leading the field and appears headed to a runoff. Registered Republican and reality television personality Spencer Pratt is currently running second, while progressive City Council member Nithya Raman remains within striking distance as additional votes are counted.
Those standings remain subject to change as counties continue processing ballots.
Newsom’s office fired back at Trump’s allegations on X, posting: “Trump is lying about California again—time to take the phone away from grandpa and put him to sleep.”
California has long been among the slowest states in the nation to report election results, a system state officials say prioritizes voter participation and ballot verification over speed.
But the lengthy process and shifting estimates of how much of the vote has actually been counted have become a growing source of frustration for many Americans.
Observers following the races have noted that publicly reported estimates of the percentage of ballots counted have not always moved in a straight line, creating confusion and prompting questions about transparency. Election experts say those changes can occur when counties revise turnout estimates and account for additional batches of ballots.
Still, critics argue that constantly changing projections and prolonged delays inevitably fuel skepticism and make it harder for voters to maintain confidence in the process.
While concerns over transparency do not, by themselves, prove wrongdoing, many voters across the political spectrum have argued that Americans have a legitimate interest in understanding why vote totals and percentages can shift days after ballots are cast and why some high-profile races can remain unresolved long after Election Day.
California mails ballots to every registered voter, and voting by mail has become the dominant method in the state. Nearly 90% of ballots in the 2024 presidential election were cast by mail.
State law allows ballots postmarked by Election Day to arrive up to seven days later. For the June primary, that deadline falls on June 9.
California also permits same-day voter registration, meaning some provisional ballots cannot be counted until voter eligibility is verified.
Officials must then verify signatures, review provisional ballots and assess damaged ballots before counties begin a mandatory audit and certification process that can take up to 30 days.
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