Nearly 150,000 Mail Ballots Rejected In California Primary

Nearly 150,000 mail-in ballots were rejected during California's June primary election, marking a sharp increase from recent elections despite the state's continued efforts to expand voter participation and ensure every eligible ballot is counted.

According to the report, late-arriving ballots accounted for the largest share of rejected votes.

The report said more than 93,000 ballots were disqualified because they arrived after the deadline, with election experts pointing to changes in U.S. Postal Service operations that may have affected postmark processing and delivery times.

Signature-related issues also contributed significantly, with nearly 44,000 ballots rejected for mismatched signatures and more than 8,300 discarded because they lacked a signature.

According to the report, election experts maintain that fraud involving mail ballots remains extremely rare.

A 2025 Brookings Institution study found only a handful of fraud cases among millions of mail ballots, while California officials say existing safeguards are designed to protect election integrity and maximize voter participation.

Related Tweet:

Staggering number of ballots rejected in California primary as slow pace cripples count https://t.co/q3jncb6TZQ pic.twitter.com/B7bM5qxcmN

— New York Post (@nypost) July 24, 2026

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tippinsightsTIPP Staff