Keep in mind that, in tight races particularly, the winner may not be known for days or weeks after Election Day. That's because early voting and mail-in ballots have fundamentally reshaped how votes are counted and when election results are known.
Incumbent Robert Luna continues to hold onto his lead in the race for L.A. County sheriff, with former sheriff Alex Villanueva in a distant second place.
If the voting trend continues, the two will meet again in a November showdown. The last time that happened, Luna soundly defeated Villanueva in the 2022 general election by 23 points. We're awaiting Thursday's vote drop to help bring this race further into focus.
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“We need change. We need progress. The only way to do that is for us to work collectively,” Luna had told voters in a video on Election Day, urging them to get out and vote.
Villanueva on Wednesday released a statement laying claim to that second spot: “We look forward to a runoff and much-needed public debate over public safety. The LASD will not survive four more years of mismanagement.”
If Luna earns more than 50% of the vote, he will be reelected as sheriff. And votes are still being counted.
Eric Strong, who is in a distant third place, said he is holding out hope he could overtake Villanueva and make it to the general election ballot.
“I still feel confident,” Strong said, referring to voting patterns in past elections, where Democratic voters have tended to vote later in the election. “As those votes start coming in and start getting counted, I expect to see my numbers go up.”
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is the largest sheriff’s agency in the nation — and is the third-largest local law enforcement agency just behind the New York Police Department and the Chicago Police Department. It’s also plagued by problems, including a recruitment crisis, complaints of excessive force by deputies and reports of inhumane conditions inside the jails, which the department oversees.
The primary decides whether Luna is addressing these and other issues adequately or whether one of his seven challengers would do better. The next sheriff will also help oversee security for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
The sheriff is the only elected official in the county who wears a badge and carries a gun. There are 8,703 sworn personnel in the department and 5,431 civilian positions.
The candidate with a majority of votes in the June primary wins. If no candidate wins a majority of votes, the top two vote-getters will face off in a November run-off.
Here are just a few of the things that the next sheriff must grapple with:
California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a lawsuit in September 2025 alleging unconstitutional, inhumane conditions inside county jails. The lawsuit cites severe filth, rat infestations, lack of clean water, spoiled food, and inadequate medical care and demands comprehensive reforms. The next sheriff will have to address jail conditions.
Like all law enforcement organizations, the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department is having a hard time finding new recruits. Deputies are sometimes forced to work overtime shifts because of a shortage of personnel. The next sheriff will have to figure out a way to recruit more deputies while maintaining standards.
Communities heavily patrolled by the Sheriff’s Department continue to have concerns about excessive use of force by sheriff’s deputies. People who protested against the presence of federal immigration officers in L.A. last summer complained of sheriff’s deputies using excessive force to break up peaceful demonstrations. The next sheriff will have to address this, as well as incidents involving use of force against people with mental illness.
Independent or outside committees can raise and spend without limits — but they're barred from coordinating with a candidate. A chart will appear above when any outside committees have spent money to support or oppose a candidate in this race. Updated every Tuesday and Thursday.
For LAist's charts showing vote counts, we get numbers directly from the L.A. County and Orange County registrars of voters for local races. Totals are updated on our site as soon as possible after the registrars provide new tallies. For statewide races, counts come from the California Secretary of State's Office.
Keep in mind that, in tight races particularly, the winner may not be determined for days or weeks after election day. That's because early voting and mail-in ballots have fundamentally reshaped how votes are counted and when election results are known. In L.A. County, for example, updates on the counting are expected to continue through June 26. After the polls closed on election night, we had updates to the official count regularly into the early hours Wednesday. After that, updates have been daily around 5 p.m. Expect updates on the following days: June 5, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 16, 18, 24 and 26. Final results must be certified by July 10.
Our priority during the vote count will be sharing outcomes and election calls only when they have been thoroughly checked and vetted by journalists. To that end, we will report when candidates concede and otherwise rely on NPR and the Associated Press for race calls (before official results). We will not report the calls or projections of other news outlets. You can find more about NPR's and the AP's process for counting votes and calling races here, here and here.
You can track the status of your ballot through California's BallotTrax website.
If your mail-in ballot has any problems (like a missing or mismatched signature), your county registrar must contact you to give you a chance to fix it.
The California Secretary of State's Office is required to certify the final vote tallies by July 10, marking the official end of the 2026 primary election.
LAist's Voter Game Plan will be back in the fall to help you prepare for the Nov. 3 general election.
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LAist senior editor Rene Lynch also contributed to this report.
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