Overview
- The June 2 primary left incumbent Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass projected to advance to a November runoff after she fell short of 50 percent, but the second slot in the mayoral race remains unresolved.
- Early returns showed Republican Spencer Pratt ahead of Democrat Nithya Raman for the second runoff spot, but successive ballot updates have narrowed Pratt’s lead and the ranking could still shift.
- In the statewide governor’s contest, Republican Steve Hilton led initial returns with Xavier Becerra close behind and Tom Steyer trailing in third, while millions of mail ballots remain to be processed.
- California accepts ballots postmarked by Election Day for up to a week after the vote and requires signature checks, provisional reviews and a voter 'cure' period, a sequence of steps election officials say makes counting slower but more accurate.
- The slow count has prompted public accusations of fraud from national figures and calls for rapid answers, and state and county officials have defended procedures while warning final results could take weeks to certify.