Investigation Finds Calif. Ballot Counting Facility Only Half-Staffed
California’s slow-moving vote count is facing fresh scrutiny after reporters visiting Los Angeles County’s massive ballot processing center found rows of empty workstations even as hundreds of thousands of ballots remained unprocessed more than a week after Election Day.
The county’s 144,000-square-foot ballot processing facility is supposed to be one of the most important election operations in the country. But according to a California Post investigation, large portions of the center appeared underused during a Thursday visit, despite a major backlog still waiting to be reviewed.
The scene has intensified concerns about the pace and transparency of ballot processing in Los Angeles County and across California, where delayed results have long frustrated voters and candidates alike.
According to figures released by county officials Wednesday night, only 77,521 additional ballots had been processed since the June 2 election.
At the same time, officials estimated that approximately 713,180 ballots remained outstanding and still needed to be counted, The California Post reported.
During The Post’s visit, however, reporters observed numerous empty workstations throughout the facility while boxes of ballots were visible across the building.
“In one area, where ballots that cannot be automatically read by scanners are reviewed by election workers, roughly 25 bins of ballots appeared ready for processing while no employees were seated at nearby desks,” the outlet reported.
“In another section where workers open envelopes and prepare ballots for counting, The Post observed about 75 employees working, despite the area being capable of accommodating more than twice that number,” it said.
President Donald J. Trump also blasted California’s drawn-out ballot count in a post on Truth Social, accusing Democrats of using late-arriving mail ballots to alter the outcome of closely watched races.
“The Dumocrats are at it again! They are trying to STEAL THE GOVERNOR OF CALIFORNIA PRIMARY, AND THE MAYOR OF LOS ANGELES, PRIMARY, AWAY FROM TWO GREAT REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES. Here we go with the very late and massive numbers of MAIL IN BALLOTS,” he posted on Truth Social.
Trump also said the Justice Department is looking into California’s election system, which conservatives have repeatedly criticized for delays, weak public confidence, and heavy reliance on mail-in ballots.
Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton, who was leading Thursday over Democrats Xavier Bacerra and Tom Steyer before later falling to third place by Sunday as more ballots were counted, said the state’s election process is embarrassing for a state that claims to represent technological innovation.
Hilton said Thursday that he would push Gov. Gavin Newsom to create an Emergency Election Count Accelerator Corps to help counties clear major ballot backlogs.
The proposal would deploy state personnel and rapid-response teams to counties struggling with delays in processing and tabulating ballots. The goal, Hilton said, would be to speed up certification and restore public confidence in the process.
“California is the laughing stock of the nation when it comes to election reporting. We are the fourth-largest economy in the world, home to Silicon Valley and some of the most advanced technology on earth, yet government bureaucrats need a month to count fewer than 10 million ballots,” he said.
The criticism is especially sharp given the size and funding of Los Angeles County’s election operation.
County budget documents show that the Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk’s Office operates with an annual budget of nearly $336 million and more than 1,100 authorized positions, making it one of the largest local election operations in the United States.
The department is led by Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean Logan, who oversees county election activities and receives an annual salary of $448,179, The Post reported.
Seeking clarity, The Post submitted several questions to the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder’s Office. Reporters asked how many employees are currently assigned to ballot counting, whether staffing shortages or vacancies exist, why so many workstations appeared empty during a major backlog, and whether additional personnel could speed up the process.
Reporters also raised those questions directly during the facility tour.
At one point, a staff member at the election center was asked why rows of ballot-processing stations appeared unused while hundreds of thousands of ballots were still waiting to be counted.
“The employee told us not to be ‘fooled by what you see,'” The Post continued. “When pressed to elaborate, the staff member offered no further explanation and walked away.”
For many conservatives, that response will do little to calm concerns.
California officials may insist the system is functioning properly, but voters are entitled to basic transparency when ballots remain uncounted for days or weeks. In a state with enormous budgets, advanced technology, and one of the largest election bureaucracies in the country, the public has every right to ask why a massive ballot center appears partially empty while results are still unresolved.
The issue is not merely speed. It is trust. And in a democratic republic, trust in elections depends on openness, competence, and accountability.