_WHAT’S HAPPENING_
Californians are still in limbo as the election results from the June 2 primary have not been counted. Election officials are still counting millions of ballots nearly a week after polls closed, with only an estimated 68 percent tallied so far.
The delay has prompted the US Attorney for California to announce multiple election fraud investigations.
As of Monday morning, Biden Health Secretary Xavier Becerra (D) leads the governor’s race with 26.8 percent — enough to advance to a runoff. Former Fox News host Steve Hilton (R) sits just behind at 26.4 percent, also securing a runoff spot, while billionaire Tom Steyer (D) trails in third place with around 21 percent of the vote.
_THE FACTS_
First Assistant US Attorney Bill Essayli announced multiple election fraud investigations in coordination with FBI Los Angeles, calling election integrity a "top priority."
Essayli cited universal vote-by-mail and lack of voter ID requirements as "serious structural vulnerabilities" that are "eroding public confidence."
California law permits mail-in ballots postmarked by Election Day to be counted if received within seven days after the election.
In the 2024 presidential election, 13 million of 16 million California votes were cast by mail.
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon will assist in conducting an audit of California's voter rolls.
California previously stonewalled efforts to verify that only eligible citizens are registered.
A pending Supreme Court case could determine whether federal law preempts state laws allowing ballots to be counted after Election Day.
California is one of eight states, plus Washington DC, that automatically sends mail ballots to all active registered voters.
If postmarks are missing or illegible, California accepts whatever date the voter wrote inside the envelope.
Rep. Bryan Steil (R-WI) introduced the MEGA Act (Make Elections Great Again), which would require all ballots to arrive by the close of polls on Election Day.
_OUR TAKE_
Four main causes for the Golden State’s broken vote-counting system include its mass mail voting, a rule allowing ballots to arrive up to seven days after Election Day, a 22-day window during which voters can fix signature problems on their ballots; and a flood of provisional ballots — issued when a voter's eligibility can't be confirmed at the polls — that must each be reviewed one by one.
Overall, the Golden State’s election rules are extremely lax and do everything to invite fraud.
A lack of voter ID requirements, automatic voter registration, and weeks-long post-election ballot processing are the chief culprits. The federal government is right to investigate voter fraud, and since the SAVE Act is all but dead, executive action may be the only remaining avenue to strengthen CA’s electoral process.
