President Trump claimed he urged California Democrats to “mislead” Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton ahead of the November general election.
During a press conference in the Oval Office on Wednesday, Trump criticized California’s election system, raising concerns over slow vote counting and fraud accusations from the primary election.
The controversy includes the unexpected decline of Spencer Pratt from second place in the Los Angeles mayoral race, despite his strong performance on Election Day.
Trump remarked, “A week later, they decided a talented kid who was leading wouldn’t make it to the runoff—so I reprimanded them for it.”
“I started mentioning Steve Hilton, a great guy, and heard them say it could take two weeks to get results. I started pressing on that.”
He warned that similar issues could arise for Hilton, insinuating that Republican candidates might be treated unfairly as Pratt was.
Trump suggested that the prompt approval of Hilton was due to officials being “too eager” about him.
“He was likely approved because he had enough votes to be at the top,” he added.
Trump noted, “They approved Hilton quickly because they said it would take time. They acted that night out of concern for their credibility.”
“If that’s the case, we can’t build a great nation.”
Hilton, a former Fox News host, revealed he will compete against Democrat Xavier Becerra in the November runoff after gathering nearly 25% of the votes on Tuesday.
“It’s an incredible honor to be selected by Californians to lead a movement for change in the greatest state of this great country,” Hilton expressed in a statement.
He criticized Becerra as “the ultimate career politician,” referencing recent polls that indicate many Californians feel the state is going in the wrong direction.
“After 36 years in the political system, his decisions have resulted in California having the highest poverty and unemployment rates, as well as the steepest cost of living in the nation. Now he’s suggesting that nothing will change.”
The general election is set for November 3rd.
