First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said Sunday California is “Blocking a Federal Audit of Its Voter Rolls” one day after Los Angeles mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt questioned the state’s vote-counting system for the first time.
Essayli, the top federal prosecutor in Los Angeles and a longtime Trump ally, outlined on X long-standing federal concerns about voter roll maintenance, ballot harvesting, and loose registration laws.
“For over a year, the Department of Justice has been trying to audit California’s voter rolls,” he said. “Federal law gives the Attorney General the authority to review state voter files and confirm that only eligible U.S. citizens are voting in federal elections.”
Essayli announced on Friday that federal authorities were investigating “evidence of election fraud in California,” but also later that night debunked a claim circulating on social media that Pratt received no new votes in a vote update.
Pratt took to social media Saturday night to express concern about California’s vote-counting system as officials continued to tally votes days after polls closed on Tuesday.
His lead over Councilwoman Nithya Raman for the second spot in November’s general election against incumbent Mayor Karen Bass narrowed throughout the weekend as more votes were counted.
Pratt fell behind Raman in the latest polling after a vote-count update on Sunday night, according to the Los Angeles Times.
President Donald Trump commented Sunday on California’s voting system while speaking with NBC’s Kristen Welker on “Meet the Press.” He abruptly ended the interview in frustration after sparring with her over whether or not there was evidence to suggest there is “cheating” in California’s elections.
“Do you think it’s appropriate that they have an election and five days later they’re nowhere close to picking a winner?” he asked before calling the elections “crooked.”
“[Republicans] are dropping fast because it’s a rigged election,” he said.
Trump’s comments and the delay in receiving the primary results follow the SAVE America Act, which would require voters to show a photo ID when voting in California, stalling in the Senate after passing the House in February.
SPENCER PRATT QUESTIONS HOW VOTES GET COUNTED IN CALIFORNIA AS LEAD OVER NITHYA RAMAN SHRINKS
Essayli explicitly noted that California allows first-time voters to register with “forms of ID that most Americans would find surprising,” such as gym membership cards, employer ID cards, and credit or debit cards.
Essayli also highlighted an election fraud tipline on Saturday since “people have been contacting our office wanting to provide information.”