As Indian-origin Nithya Raman edged ahead and is now locked in a tight race with Republican candidate Spencer Pratt in the Los Angeles mayor primary, President Donald Trump and Elon Musk revived their election fraud claims. In the latest update of the primary counting, Democrats Karen Bass, the incumbent mayor, and Nithya Raman are projected to advance to a run-off and Pratt is unlikely to make the cut under California's open primary system.
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Trump said the election was crooked and the Republican candidates in California were being cheated. The Department of Justice dispatched an Assistant U.S. Attorney to observe vote counting in LA, while California Attorney General Rob Bonta reassured the public about election integrity. Elon Musk on Monday shared posts that questioned the result as Nithya Raman, in the beginning, was not in a position to race ahead of Pratt. On the election day, Raman herself said the early numbers were not what her campaign expected. But in a surprising turn, she is now second in the race.
The primary was held on June 2 and the counting is going on.