California authorities have initiated investigations into the state’s recent elections following unsubstantiated claims of fraud by former President Donald Trump. Bill Essayli, first assistant U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, announced that his office, in collaboration with the FBI, is pursuing multiple election fraud investigations.
Essayli stated on social media that they would pursue the evidence and prosecute any violations of federal election law rigorously. He criticized California’s mail-in voting system, which has been a target of fraudulent claims by Trump.
The FBI has yet to comment on the election-related investigations in California. Additionally, a federal prosecutor from the U.S. attorney’s office visited the Los Angeles County ballot processing center. The L.A. County registrar’s office confirmed the visit and noted that the prosecutor was given an overview of public observation procedures and participated in a walkthrough of the ballot processing operations.
The registrar’s office noted, “Ballot processing is open to public observation and routinely hosts observers from various groups including politicians, advocacy groups, or public members.”
The Justice Department did not provide immediate feedback regarding the prosecutor’s visit. These developments follow Trump’s claims that Democrats are attempting to steal California primary elections. Trump alleged, without evidence, that large-scale cheating was delaying the vote count.
California’s vote-by-mail system, which allows ballots postmarked by election day and received within seven days to be counted, can delay the announcement of winners in competitive races. For instance, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, a Democrat, was declared the winner eight days after the 2022 election day. She is now seeking reelection and has moved forward to the November election.
Typically, mail ballots favor Democratic candidates in this largely Democratic state. In California, the top two candidates in primary elections move to the general election irrespective of party affiliation. With ongoing vote counts, Trump and his supporters like Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton have intensified critique of the voting process.
On Friday evening, NBC News projected Democratic gubernatorial candidate Xavier Becerra as advancing to the general election. Hilton competes against Democrat Tom Steyer for the second spot. In Los Angeles’s mayoral race, Trump-endorsed Spencer Pratt challenges Democrat Nithya Raman to face Bass in the November elections.