California voters await 38-day certification for final 2026 midterm results

More than 23 million registered voters in California face a wait of 38 days for the final certification of their 2026 midterm ballots. Secretary of State Shirley Weber’s office sets the timeline for when counties must submit official results and when the state seals the final numbers.

The process begins as soon as polls close on November 3. County election officials start tallying votes and must report initial figures to the state within two hours of beginning that count. These early numbers are semi-official. They reflect in-person votes cast on Election Day, early in-person ballots, and mail-in ballots that were received and processed before polls closed.

Before November 3, officials can open and process up to 29 days’ worth of mail-in ballot envelopes. However, they cannot share those results with the public until all voting locations have stopped accepting ballots. Once the day ends, counties continue to report totals periodically until every precinct has reported its numbers.

The state does not consider results final until the Secretary of State compiles the official statewide totals. This occurs after every county completes its canvass. The canvass is a 30-day period where officials confirm all valid ballots are counted. During this time, they process provisional ballots, same-day registration ballots, and mail-in ballots postmarked by Election Day but received within seven days of the vote.

Officials must compare signatures on ballot envelopes to signatures on file. If a signature is missing or does not match, state law requires officials to contact voters to verify their identity. Voters have until eight days before the county certifies results to fix signature issues. Additionally, counties must conduct a public 1% manual tally to verify the automated machine count.

Counties must count and report all ballots by the 13th day after the election. Exceptions may delay this, including ballots requiring duplication, forwarded ballots, provisional or conditional ballots, and mail-in ballots with signature cure issues. Officials must also account for ballots with valid postmarks received after the fourth day following the election.

If a county cannot meet the 30-day deadline, it must file an extension with the Secretary of State and explain the reason. The state then certifies the final results 38 days after the election. Until that certification, the numbers remain subject to change.