Trump’s attack on California elections reveal GOP’s pathetic MAGA strategy | Opinion
President Donald Trump once again demonstrated his willingness to undermine American democracy by claiming without any evidence on Sunday that California elections are rigged.
During the interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” the president ranted that the slow counting in the California Primary means the elections are rigged. It’s the same divisive playbook he’s used before — sow doubt, divide the country, and rally his base with conspiracy. What’s more concerning is how California Republicans are eagerly echoing his claims. GOP candidate for Los Angeles mayor and reality TV star Spencer Pratt is now shouting election fraud simply because he’s dropped to third in the race.
The truth of the matter is that Trump and too many of his followers in the GOP don’t understand California and how we do elections. And to be brutally honest, this disconnect is all the president’s doing. This is the same leader who chose not to attend this year’s Super Bowl. He wants to create a division between California and the rest of the country to boost support for his MAGA regime.
In case the president forgets, California is the third-largest state in the country by size and the most populous. Maybe Trump forgot how to count, but it takes time to count the votes of millions of people.
What Trump and his allies ignore is that California’s election system is actually a model for voter access and participation. The state leads the nation in reforms like universal mail-in ballots, early voting, and same-day registration — measures that have resulted in record turnout in recent elections. Far from being “rigged,” California’s approach has empowered more citizens from all backgrounds to have their voices heard. That’s something to celebrate, not undermine.
We’re living in a time when the most powerful are also the most whiny.
Not what Los Angeles needs
In Los Angeles, fewer than 15% of registered voters are Republicans, according to the latest statistics by the California Secretary of State. Unless, of course, those statistics are rigged as well. The bottom line is that Los Angeles is a blue city, and what’s playing out in the mayor’s race is consistent with that political reality.
Yet now, thousands of visitors are arriving to attend World Cup soccer games, only to witness another political circus. Trump has done little to help the city recover from the horrible fires of last year. And how he hurls false claims at the city’s electoral process.
As America is set to celebrate its 250th anniversary, we face a critical moment in our nation’s history, when the American people must reject Trump’s tactics and not allow this petty and tired strategy to become the norm.
Our country is better than this, but only we can prove that.
This story was originally published June 8, 2026 at 10:55 AM.