By admin 
Even as voter turnout increased in California’s 2026 primary election, stark regional disparities persisted, with many inland counties continuing to lag behind coastal communities and Sierra foothill counties.
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Statewide turnout reached 40.7%, up from 35% in the 2024 primary and 33.2% in the 2022 primary.
Election data from the Secretary of State’s Office showed turnout varied dramatically across the state. Amador County recorded the highest turnout at 60.1%, followed by Marin (59.2%), Sierra (58.7%), Mariposa (57.9%), Plumas (57.5%), Tuolumne (57.3%) and Nevada (57%). At the other end of the spectrum, Imperial County recorded the state’s lowest turnout at 27.1%. Tulare (31.7%), Kern (32.1%), San Bernardino (32.6%), San Joaquin (33.8%), Merced (34.2%) and Fresno (34.6%) also ranked among the lowest.
Lisa Bryant, chair of Fresno State’s political science department who researches political polarization and trust in elections, said lower turnout in many inland counties reflects long-standing demographic and socioeconomic trends.
“Population growth doesn’t necessarily indicate growth of eligible voters,” she said.
Bryant said fast-growing counties in the Central Valley tend to have lower rates of college attainment, which research has consistently linked to lower voter participation.
Eric McGhee, a senior fellow at the Public Policy Institute of California, said several demographic factors can suppress turnout. He added that high-mobility urban counties such as Los Angeles, along with fast-growing inland counties in the Central Valley, have large numbers of young residents moving in and out, making voter registration and maintaining a consistent voter base more difficult.
Imperial County has remained a persistent outlier in recent election cycles, ranking last statewide despite improving from 22.8% turnout in the 2024 primary to 27.1% this year.
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Bryant said the county faces several overlapping challenges associated with lower political participation, including a younger population, higher poverty rates and lower population density, creating what she described as a “perfect storm” for low voter engagement. She also cited its large Latino population as one demographic factor researchers have found can correlate with lower turnout, while emphasizing that no single characteristic explains voting behavior.
The turnout increase in June did not eliminate California’s longstanding regional divide. Many rural mountain counties and several affluent coastal counties continued to post turnout above 50%, while many large inland counties remained below 40%.
McGhee said competitive, high-profile races likely helped boost turnout in this year’s primary.
“Often in a primary, turnout is low because everything is so partisan,” he said. “So voters don’t get riled up about distinctions between candidates within parties, but we just had the first truly open gubernatorial primary in a long time.”
McGhee said competitive local races can also drive turnout, particularly in mayoral and congressional contests, although those effects are typically localized rather than countywide.
“If you took someone from a rural county and placed them in LA they’d probably vote at the same rate. It’s really not too dependent on geography.”
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