California Late Mail Ballots Could Delay Top-2 Primary Calls as Democratic Share Tops 50%
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jun 3
California Late Mail Ballots Could Delay Top-2 Primary Calls as Democratic Share Tops 50%
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jun 3
More than 50% of mail ballots returned in the past week came from registered Democrats, raising the odds that votes counted after Election Day shift California primary standings.
More than 80% of ballots in California are cast by mail, and ballots postmarked by Election Day can arrive within seven days and still take up to 30 days to count.
The risk is especially acute in the governor's race, where Democrats Xavier Becerra and Tom Steyer and Republican Steve Hilton are competing for two general-election spots with more than 10% of voters recently undecided.
Recent primaries show how long the wait can last: in 2024 only about half the total vote was counted by the end of election night, and in 2022 and 2024 more than a quarter of House races were still uncalled by the following Monday.