{"id":5439,"date":"2026-06-03T04:05:57","date_gmt":"2026-06-03T04:05:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sandiegorelocationnews.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/03\/why-does-it-take-up-to-30-days-to-certify-the-results-of-a-california-election\/"},"modified":"2026-06-03T04:05:57","modified_gmt":"2026-06-03T04:05:57","slug":"why-does-it-take-up-to-30-days-to-certify-the-results-of-a-california-election","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sandiegorelocationnews.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/03\/why-does-it-take-up-to-30-days-to-certify-the-results-of-a-california-election\/","title":{"rendered":"Why does it take up to 30 days to certify the results of a California election?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Tallying votes in the 2026 California primary could take days \u2014 or even weeks.<\/p>\n

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By state law, county officials have up to 30 days to formally certify election results, the California Secretary of State\u2019s Office said.<\/p>\n

Read more Forgot to vote in the 2026 California primary? Here are the next voter deadlines<\/a><\/p>\n

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The state has in excess of 23 million registered voters \u2014 more than any other, according to the Secretary of State.<\/p>\n

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In an effort to improve California\u2019s speed when it comes to tallying votes, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed AB-5 on Oct. 3, which took effect Jan. 1. The law requires \u201celections officials, on or before the 13th day following an election, to finish counting all ballots, with certain exceptions, including provisional ballots and ballots for which the voter must either verify or provide a signature, and release a vote count for those ballots.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Yolo County\u2019s top elections official, Jese Salina, who is also the president of the California Association of Clerks and Elections Officials, told CalMatters there is a caveat. The ballots that are the exceptions take the most time to count. State law provides a weeks-long window for those questions to be addressed.<\/p>\n

Read more Rep. Adam Gray leads California\u2019s 13th Congressional District with early votes<\/a><\/p>\n

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\u201cI\u2019m hearing these comments about \u2018We should be done by the 13th day,\u2019 \u2014 that\u2019s legally not possible by state law,\u201d Salina told the CalMatters.<\/p>\n

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Once all 58 counties have formally certified their results, the Secretary of State\u2019s Office has 38 days from the election to issue a final statewide certification. For the 2026 primary election, that falls on July 10.<\/p>\n

Read more Thompson has lead in early voting for California\u2019s 4th Congressional District<\/a><\/p>\n

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