US attorney predicts ‘people will be charged’ over California voter rolls

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Bill Essayli, the first assistant U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, on Monday said it is likely “people will be charged” over alleged voter fraud in California.

“I expect people will be charged. But we need a wide-scale audit of the California voter roll, which is what Harmeet and I have been trying to do for the last year,” Essayli said, referring to Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division Harmeet Dhillon, during an appearance on “The Glenn Beck Program.”

Republican lawmakers have cast doubt on the L.A. mayoral race as GOP candidate Spencer Pratt did not advance to a runoff despite being in second place when the polls closed on June 2.

President Trump has alleged the Los Angeles mayoral race was a “rigged election.”

“Watch California, everybody!” he wrote on Truth Social Thursday night. “Our Election process is as bad, or worse, than any Third World Country. The biggest difference is, they count their Votes much faster — They don’t wait seven days to tell you who won, rigging the Election during each and every one of them. Americans are ashamed of what is happening!”

In California, the primary vote count can take days or even weeks as voters are allowed to mail in ballots postmarked by Election Day. Ballots must arrive at county election offices by June 9, which can slow down the vote count.

On Friday, Essayli announced his office had “multiple election fraud investigations underway” but did not offer any specifics.

He alleged California’s election system was rife with “serious structural vulnerabilities,” criticizing the state’s policy of allowing mail-in voting and not requiring photo ID at the polls — two practices Trump often claims, without evidence, contribute to widespread voter fraud.

On Monday, Essayli slammed the state’s voting process and accused Golden State officials of allowing noncitizens to vote, which is prohibited by federal law. He did not offer any evidence.

The Trump administration has continued to raise concerns with similar forms of voter fraud, despite reports that say cases of noncitizens voting are rare.

Still, the Justice Department has sued California for access to its voter registration rolls under the Help America Vote Act and opened probes into alleged voter fraud across the state.

“California is a fraudster’s paradise, make no mistake about that, whether it’s hospice fraud, healthcare fraud or election fraud,” Essayli told Beck.

The California Secretary of State’s Office did not immediately respond to The Hill’s request for comment on the matter.

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