California Voting Ends Tuesday. The Results? Don’t Expect Them Anytime Soon
County officials expect slower results because mail ballots can arrive for seven days after Election Day and some races still allow 13 days for counting.
- On Tuesday, Californians voted in primary elections determining Gov. Gavin Newsom's successor and dozens of congressional races. Results may take days or weeks to emerge due to the state's notoriously slow ballot-counting process.
- California's mail-in voting system, where ballots postmarked by Election Day arrive within seven days, causes delays. The 'Jungle Primary' system adds complexity as officials verify signatures and process late-arriving ballots.
- An Assembly Bill passed last year reduced the counting deadline from 30 days to 13 days for most ballots. Gov. Gavin Newsom urged officials to tabulate votes 'as quickly as possible,' though counties still have 30 days to certify official results.
- Delays fuel misinformation risks, as critics warn the long count 'gives energy to those who think that fraud is going on.' Campaigns must allocate resources to 'chase' ballots and registrations needing correction after Election Day.
- Experts argue the slow process prioritizes 'maximum participation,' though studies show California's voter turnout decreased nearly 5 percent since 2020. As democracies worldwide produce results within hours, debate persists over whether the state's system fits a 'real-time' world.
13 Articles
13 Articles
The Bakersfield Californian
California voting ends Tuesday. The results? Don’t expect them anytime soon
Even after all the ballots have been cast on Tuesday, it might be a while before Californians know the results of some significant races this election, given the state’s notoriously slow counting.
California’s Third World Elections: Slow Count Looms as Officials Blame ‘So Many Candidates’ for Delayed Results
Election Day is something of a misnomer in California. By state law, the process of voting and tabulating ballots stretches far beyond the traditional single day of in-person polling. With universal mail-in ballots sent out to every registered voter up to 29 days before Election Day, and early in-person voting available at designated voting centers starting as early as the weekend before the election, voting in the Golden State is effectively a …
Why the Results of the California Primary Might Not Come in on Election Night
A person places their mail-in ballot into a ballot box during early voting outside of the LA County Registrar-Recorder building in Norwalk, California, on June 1, 2026. —Ronaldo Bolaños—Los Angeles Times/Getty ImagesCalifornians are voting on Tuesday in the state’s primary election. But there could be a wait before all the results are in.The outcome of the primary in the race for Gov. Gavin Newsom’s successor in particular is the subject of wide…
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