President Donald Trump on Thursday sharply criticized California’s election process, accusing Democrats of trying to manipulate the results as vote counting continued days after the state’s primary elections.
The remarks came while California officials were still processing ballots from Tuesday’s jungle primaries for governor and Los Angeles mayor. Election authorities had already warned that counting the large number of mail-in ballots could take several weeks.
Trump took to Truth Social early Thursday, claiming Democrats were attempting to “steal” key races from Republican candidates.
“The Dumocrats are at it again! 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, criticizing the state’s reliance on mail-in ballots and the lengthy counting process.
In another post, Trump alleged there was “BIG cheating” taking place and questioned why the final results were taking so long to arrive. He also stated that the matter was being investigated by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles.
Later in the day, Trump renewed his criticism and urged Republicans to support the “Save America Act,” a proposal he described as requiring photo identification for voters, proof of U.S. citizenship, tighter restrictions on mail-in ballots, and additional conservative policy measures.
Meanwhile, California Gov. Gavin Newsom defended the pace of the vote count, arguing that the extended timeline is part of the state’s election laws. Newsom’s office released a video featuring CNN correspondent Elex Michaelson explaining why California often takes longer than other states to finalize election results.
In the video, Michaelson suggested that states such as Florida and Texas prioritize speed, while California allows voters more flexibility and additional time for ballots to be received and counted.
Critics quickly pushed back online, arguing that California’s election system creates distrust and opens the door to concerns about transparency and accountability.
Conservative commentator Jarrett Stepman wrote Thursday that Americans should expect elections to be “free and fair” with timely results, adding that California’s prolonged counting process has fueled skepticism for years.
Stepman noted that California significantly expanded mail-in voting and changed several election procedures in 2016, leading to slower ballot processing and delayed final results.
Supporters of the system argue that the state’s election rules increase voter access and participation. Critics, however, say the delays undermine public confidence in the process.
Attention has also focused on the Los Angeles mayoral race, where early results suggested incumbent Democrat Karen Bass and Republican challenger Spencer Pratt were positioned to advance to the runoff election, while progressive candidate Nithya Raman appeared to trail behind.
However, as additional mail-in ballots continued to be counted after Election Day, Raman’s numbers reportedly improved, leading some critics to question the shifting results.
Stepman argued that the continued changes in vote totals days after the election were fueling accusations of unfairness and raising concerns among voters about the integrity of California’s election system.
