Trump claims ballots ‘found’ as California primary election count continues
President Donald Trump on Thursday — without evidence — accused California Democrats of stealing votes as ballots from Tuesday’s primary election are still being counted, leaving the fate of many races still in the balance.
“Look what’s happening in California, the Dumocrats, right before our very eyes, are stealing the Vote,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. “I hope the Republicans are watching so that they can finally pass THE SAVE AMERICA ACT!”, he added, referring to a proposal federal law that would severely limit the use of mail-in ballots along with other changes.
The measure has stalled in Congress due to fears that it will disenfranchise millions of voters and other concerns.
That post came roughly 12 hours after Trump claimed, also on Truth Social, that the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles was investigating why it was taking the state so long to count outstanding ballots.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office declined to comment on the president’s post.
As of Thursday afternoon, Los Angeles U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli, a prolific X user, had not posted anything about the election or the vote count.
Trump, for years, has made accusations about widespread voter fraud that have not been proven.
California Secretary of State Shirley Weber, on Thursday, defended the state in the face of the president’s latest claims, although she did not mention Trump.
“Accuracy comes before speed,” Weber said in a statement. “California is the nation’s largest voting state, with millions of ballots to process and count. Taking the time to do this work correctly protects voters’ rights and ensures the integrity of our elections.”
A spokesperson for the Secretary of State’s Office declined to comment on if the office was aware of a federal investigation.
Ahead of the primary, the Legislature passed and Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a new law making it a crime for law enforcement officials to seize ballots, voter rolls or election technology without a court order. The bill applied to both federal and local officials. It’s not clear to what extent it could actually block a federal investigation. The law requires the Attorney General’s Office to give election officials guidance on how to respond to requests by law enforcement agencies to areas where ballots are cast, handled or counted.
The Attorney General’s Office did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment.
Jesse Salinas, Yolo County’s registrar of voters and the current president of the California Association of Clerks and Election Officials, said the state’s elections are secure and transparent.
“The process is extended, by state law, to try to make it as accessible as possible,” he said.
Vote counting could continue for another 30 days, which could mean more criticism from the president is on the way as races for coveted congressional seats, the Los Angeles mayor job and to be California’s next governor are still not finalized.
Steve Hilton, the Republican who is currently leading the vote count for the gubernatorial race, has been on conservative newscasts since the election vehemently criticizing how long it takes California to count votes. But in one appearance Hilton said he saw no signs of vote manipulation. In an interview with conservative commentator Benny Johnson, Hilton said that if he saw some indication of latter ballot counts becoming suspiciously one-sided to Democrats he would sue. But, “actually, so far we’re not seeing any signs of that,” Hilton said. “It is true that we get these late delivery deliveries of ballots because we’ve got this unbelievable rule that ballots can arrive seven days after Election Day and still be counted.” Hilton remained confident he would emerge from the primary with a spot in the general election, he said.
Trump in the Oval Office Thursday also claimed that mail-in ballots were being “found” in California.
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s Office took to X Thursday to directly respond to that comment.
“These are legitimate ballots post-marked by Election Day arriving to legitimate ballot counting centers — as has been standard practice for years and a process that takes place in numerous states regardless of the party in power,” the office said.
“And yes, for the record,” the Governor’s Office said in another post Thursday, “we wish the votes were counted faster, too.”
This story was originally published June 4, 2026 at 4:26 PM with the headline "Trump claims ballots ‘found’ as California primary election count continues."
