Election results: Here’s what you will find in our coverage

Election results change throughout Election Night and in the days that follow as counties continue counting ballots. The Sacramento Bee regularly updates its coverage with the latest vote percentages as results are reported by the various jurisdictions. We use percentages in our stories instead of raw numbers, which can quickly become outdated.

You can track those on our election results pages, which will be posted ahead of the polls closing at sacbee.com.

Updating results

In California’s vote-by-mail era, results often take days or weeks as counties process and verify millions of ballots. Early returns provide only a partial picture of the outcome, particularly in close races. California law allows ballots postmarked by Election Day to arrive and be counted in the days that follow. We continually track those.

Sacramento County typically posts up to three vote updates after polls close at 8 p.m., then continues updating results twice a week until all ballots are counted. Other counties in the capital region follow similar schedules.

The outcomes, key dates

For state and national races, including legislative contests, The Bee generally relies on the Associated Press to call races. In local contests, The Bee generally does not project winners. We report outcomes when candidates concede, results are certified or when the remaining uncounted ballots are insufficient to change the result.

After Election Day, counties continue counting mail ballots, provisional ballots and other outstanding votes during the official canvass period. Counties are expected to certify results by July 3, with final statewide certification scheduled for July 10.

This story was originally published June 2, 2026 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Election results: Here’s what you will find in our coverage."