California Election Investigations
U.S. Attorney's Office Launches California Election Fraud Investigations Amid Trump Claims
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The U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles opened multiple election fraud investigations into California's June 2 primary and sent a federal prosecutor to the Los Angeles County ballot-counting center on Friday, Associated Press reported. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli, a Trump appointee, confirmed the probe and dispatched Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Renner to the City of Industry processing facility while ballots were still being counted.
The action follows President Trump's claim on Truth Social that Democrats were "trying to steal" the election as late-arriving mail-in ballots began closing Republican leads in races for governor and Los Angeles mayor, Los Angeles Times reported. Election experts say the shift is a predictable result of California's voting system — not fraud.
Trump's Fraud Claims Trigger Federal Response
On election night, June 2, Republican candidates held early leads. Steve Hilton led the governor's race with 28% of the vote, per KTLA. Spencer Pratt led Nithya Raman by 7 points for a Los Angeles mayor runoff spot. Then mail-in ballots began arriving, and margins tightened. Trump posted on Truth Social on June 3: "They found a lot of mail-in ballots last night, shockingly... It's a crooked state."
By Thursday, Trump told reporters the DOJ was investigating the count. On Friday morning, Essayli made it official. He cited "serious structural vulnerabilities" in California's system, specifically its universal mail-in ballot law and lack of voter ID requirements, PJ Media reported. California Secretary of State Dr. Shirley Weber pushed back, saying the process "protects voters' rights and ensures the integrity of our elections," per Los Angeles Times.
The 'Red Mirage' Explains the Vote Shift
California requires all ballots postmarked by Election Day to be counted if they arrive within seven days, TIME reported. Republicans tend to vote in person; Democrats lean heavily on mail-in ballots. This creates a pattern experts call the "red mirage" — Republicans lead on election night, then lose ground as mail votes are processed. About 73% of ballots cast in Los Angeles County were mail-in, per the LA County Registrar.
No public evidence of widespread fraud in the 2026 primary has emerged. California Governor Gavin Newsom dismissed Trump's claims as "misinformation" and accused him of "lying about California again," per KFI AM 640. Election experts and CalMatters noted the state prioritizes accuracy over speed, which explains why results take days to finalize compared to states like Florida.
A Real Fraud Case Fuels the Federal Push
Essayli pointed to a recent DOJ case as proof of systemic risk. Brenda Lee Brown Armstrong, 64, of Marina del Rey, was federally charged in May for allegedly paying homeless people on Skid Row $2 to $3 — or cigarettes — to register to vote using fake addresses, per the Department of Justice. Essayli framed the case as evidence that California's system can be exploited.
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon is also coordinating with Essayli on a federal audit of California's voter rolls. California is fighting that demand in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Los Angeles Times reported. A ruling in the federal government's favor would set a major precedent for how much oversight Washington can exercise over state-run elections.
Hilton Pushes Reforms as Race Hangs in Balance
Republican frontrunner Steve Hilton held a news conference Friday at the San Mateo County Registrar's office, per KESQ. He proposed an "Emergency Election Support Corps" and called for limiting mail-in ballots to only those who request them. He called the situation "absolutely shameful," though he stopped short of directly accusing officials of fraud. Voter turnout in Los Angeles County sat at just 25.08% of eligible voters processed so far.
The investigations mark a sharp escalation in federal involvement in California's elections. If they delay certification, candidates could be blocked from launching general election campaigns, TIME reported. With Hilton at 28%, Becerra at 26%, and Steyer at 20% in the governor's race, the final outcome won't be clear until all mail ballots are counted — likely by next week.
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