At first glance, the California primary results look encouraging for conservatives.
As I write this, Steve Hilton appears to be running ahead of Xavier Becerra for governor, while Tom Steyer is trailing badly.
In Los Angeles, candidate Spencer Pratt appears positioned for a strong runoff challenge against Mayor Karen Bass. Meanwhile, another candidate appears far enough behind that a comeback seems unlikely.
But don’t celebrate yet.
The reality is that an estimated 3 million ballots still have to be counted.
Because of California’s massive mail-in voting system, election night results are often only the beginning of the story.
Historically, large numbers of late-counted ballots have dramatically changed races after election night.
That means today’s apparent winners may not be tomorrow’s winners.
And that’s the real problem.
Florida can report results on election night.
California once did, too.
Today, Californians may wait weeks—and sometimes more than a month—for final election results.
That’s unacceptable.
It creates uncertainty.
It undermines confidence.
And it opens the door to concerns about election integrity, transparency, and accountability.
No matter where you stand politically, voters deserve timely election results.
We’ll continue watching these races closely.
In our next issue, we’ll have a full report on California’s surprising election developments, what the final numbers reveal, and what they could mean for the political battles ahead nationwide.
Stay tuned.