Despite years of expanding vote-by-mail, early voting and ballot access, California continues to struggle with low primary election turnout, especially among younger voters and many communities of color.
California is finally nearing the end of the ballot counting from its June 2 primary, a tediously slow process that is largely the result of multiple changes over the years intended to boost turnout by making voting easier and more accessible.
State data and experts who study voting trends suggest those efforts have made no significant improvement in participation, even as California’s drawn-out tabulating has put it in the crosshairs of President Donald Trump and made it a target of those who promote unfounded election conspiracy theories.
Turnout hit 40.8% in the June primary, according to preliminary figures from the secretary of state’s office, with counties required to complete their counting by Thursday. While that was an increase over the previous two primary elections, it was below participation levels in several other primaries stretching back to 2000 and nowhere near participation in the 1970s, when primary turnout sometimes topped 70%.
Early analyzes found that Latino turnout was higher than in recent comparable primaries, but white voters still accounted for more than two-thirds of ballots cast in the initial returns.
An estimated 2 million Latino voters cast ballots in California’s June 2 primary, according to calculations based on statewide turnout and Latino voter registration data. While California does not officially track voters’ race or ethnicity, analysts estimate Latino participation using voter files and demographic modeling. The election highlighted the growing influence of Latino voters, who make up nearly one-quarter of the state’s registered electorate and remain a pivotal voting bloc in statewide and local races.
Wide gaps also remain in participation by younger voters and voters of color, according to the Center for Inclusive Democracy, a nonpartisan research group. The state’s most consistent voters remain older, white, more affluent homeowners.
The state appears to have seen only incremental progress from its voting changes over the past decade or more, said the center’s director, Mindy Romero.
“We haven’t seen significant jumps in turnout,” she said. “We still have very significant disparity in turnout with race and ethnicity. The numbers don’t lie.”
