Investigation into Voter Fraud in California
Federal authorities are launching an investigation into allegations of voter fraud in California, with plans for a “comprehensive audit” of the state’s voter rolls. This announcement came from First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Esseri, who shared the news on X. The Department of Justice (DOJ) is coordinating this effort with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
On Friday, Esseri underscored an ongoing plea deal related to voter fraud from May, showcasing the persistent efforts of his office. He noted that after the primary election on Tuesday, they have “multiple election fraud investigations underway” throughout California.
“Yes, there is evidence of election fraud in California. This is a case that was just filed last month. Further investigation is underway,” tweeted Esseri.
Mike Sanchez, a spokesperson for the county Registrar-Recorder’s office, mentioned that they were informed late Thursday that an assistant U.S. attorney would be monitoring the ballot processing center.
He explained, “This individual arrived this morning, was briefed on the public monitoring program, and participated in a demonstration of the ballot processing operations,” adding that the vote counting is open for public observation.
As of Thursday night, California Secretary of State Shirley Weber reported that county election offices had processed 5.6 million ballots. Yet, an estimated 3.6 million ballots were still pending counting.
This delay has drawn sharp criticism from Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton. He described the situation as an “absolutely shameful mess for our state” in a statement.
Hilton also criticized outgoing Governor Gavin Newsom, urging his administration to expedite the counting process and allocate state resources to ensure verified results by the following Thursday.
In a tweet, Hilton remarked, “California Democrats have turned our state into a global laughing stock. Over 600 million ballots are counted every day in India. In California, there are less than 10 million people a month.”
The governor’s office promptly dismissed Hilton’s request, characterizing it as a political maneuver.
Brandon Richards, deputy director of rapid response for Newsom County, expressed, “It’s concerning that the gubernatorial candidate doesn’t know that the governor has nothing to do with the vote counting,” emphasizing that county officials are managing the canvass independently.
According to the latest updates, by Friday night, 64% of the total votes had been counted. Hilton was leading narrowly with 26.6% of the vote, closely followed by Xavier Becerra at 26.5% and Tom Steyer in third with 20.8%.
