Why Is California Suddenly Voting Republican?

Summary

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The Isabel Brown Show – Ep. “Why Is California Suddenly Voting Republican?”

Date: June 3, 2026
Host: The Daily Wire

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Episode Overview

This episode explores the startling political shift observed in California following the most recent primaries, where numerous traditionally Democrat-leaning areas turned “red,” favoring Republican candidates. Isabel Brown delves into the surprising performance of GOP hopefuls Steve Hilton for governor and Spencer Pratt in the Los Angeles mayoral race, examines the state's unique electoral system, highlights ongoing controversy and concerns over election security, and invites California listeners to share their perspectives.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Shock Over California’s Republican Shift

• The host expresses disbelief and cautious optimism about California's new political direction:
  • “Never in my wildest dreams would I ever have expected to be starting a video with saying ‘Is California turning red again?’ I am probably the Internet's biggest resident California hater... but I watched my home state of Colorado be intentionally destroyed by Californians throughout my entire childhood. So it pains me to say I have a lot of hope for California in the next six months after everything that happened with the primary elections yesterday. And you should too.” (00:57)
• Key map highlights: Sacramento, Fresno, San Diego, and about 70% of the state trending red.

2. Los Angeles Mayor’s Race: Unprecedented Developments

• Neither candidate won a majority; thus, the top two advance to November:
  • Karen Bass (incumbent, Democrat): ~172,000 votes
  • Spencer Pratt (Republican): ~151,000 votes
• The host is “shook,” noting, “Of course this guy is the one who is advancing the state of California politics in the LA mayor's race to something completely unprecedented.” (02:26)
• Spencer Pratt’s campaign emerges from his personal experience: losing his home in the Palisades fire and his criticism of Bass’s leadership.

3. Spencer Pratt’s Response and Campaign Momentum

• Spencer Pratt shares excitement and calls for weekly debates:
  • “You know, I love debating her on NBC. I look forward to a couple more on NBC and Fox. We can do debates every Friday if she would like, because this actually became my most favorite thing to do.” (03:42, Spencer Pratt)
• Pratt credits God for his momentum:
  • “Well, obviously God wanted five more months of me exposing all the failures of our mayor. So it's going to be a fun ride. I hope she's ready. Are you ready? I mean, I was born for this.” (04:33, Spencer Pratt)

4. California’s Open Primary System Explained

• California utilizes an open or “jungle” primary: top two—regardless of party—advance unless one receives a majority. The host expresses confusion and asks Californians to confirm this process. (02:26–3:35)

5. Election Security and Integrity Concerns

• Deep skepticism about the fairness and integrity of elections:

  • “California has some of the worst election laws in the entire country when it comes to voter ID, making sure you are the person who says that you are that person.” (05:16)
  • Issues cited:
    • Lack of voter ID checks
    • Lax signature-based registration
    • Mail-in ballot vulnerability
    • Duplicate votes
    • Inaccurate voter rolls (dead individuals still voting, even a registered dog)

• Nick Shirley’s investigative reporting:

  • “Nick Shirley just exposed a whole lot of this in his breakdown of the fraud happening in Southern California... There are millions of people who vote with no ID. They have month long election processes... Dead people are regularly voting. He even found a dog that successfully registered to vote.” (06:41)

Notable Anecdotes:

• Ballot Dropboxes Set on Fire: “Already there were reports in this primary race that happened this week of entire ballot dropboxes being set on fire, probably to prevent Spencer Pratt ballots from remotely being counted vote by mail.” (08:10)
• Voting Without ID: Xavier Derusso (Prager U) shares his experience voting without any proof of residence or ID:
  • “So you don't need to see my ID. You don't need any kind of proof that I actually live in this city?…I voted in Beverly Hills today…without any kind of proof.” (09:23, Voter)

6. Realignment in Voter Registration

• Republican voter registration surges by nearly 140,000 in Beverly Hills and LA at large.

• Notably, Beverly Hills, once overwhelmingly Democratic, now sees significantly reduced Democratic support in the mayoral race.

  • “There were almost 140,000 new Republican voters registered for this election in Beverly hills and in LA across the board. In 2024 the city voted 70 plus percent for Kamala Harris. But right now, the two Democrat candidates in this mayoral primary hold less than 60% of the vote. Something really big is happening in California and I am so here for it.” (10:07)

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Notable Quotes

| Timestamp | Speaker | Quote | |-----------|------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 00:57 | Political Commentator | “Never in my wildest dreams would I ever have expected to be starting a video with saying Is California turning red again?” | | 03:42 | Spencer Pratt | “You know, I love debating her on NBC...We can do debates every Friday if she would like...I literally could not be more excited.” | | 04:33 | Spencer Pratt | “Well, obviously God wanted five more months of me exposing all the failures of our mayor. So it's going to be a fun ride.” | | 06:41 | Political Commentator | “Nick Shirley just exposed a whole lot of this in his breakdown of the fraud happening in Southern California...He even found a dog that successfully registered to vote.” | | 09:23 | Voter (Xavier Derusso) | “I just voted in California in a city that I literally was not registered to vote in...I voted in Beverly Hills today...without any kind of proof.” | | 10:07 | Political Commentator | “There were almost 140,000 new Republican voters registered for this election in Beverly hills and in LA across the board...Something really big is happening in California and I am so here for it.” |

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Audience Participation

• Isabel calls for feedback from Californians and Angelenos:
  • “I’m dying to know Californians, Angelenos, what the heck is happening in SoCal? And do you think that Spencer Pratt and Steve Hilton even have a chance come the general election in November? Who are you voting for? Let us know in the comments.” (10:52)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:57 – Initial shock and hope for California’s future
• 01:30 – Republican Steve Hilton leading primary; map analysis
• 02:00 – L.A. mayor’s race result breakdown; Spencer Pratt advances
• 03:42 – Spencer Pratt calls for debates and emphasizes campaign momentum
• 04:33 – Pratt credits God for his campaign's success
• 05:16 – Election integrity and security concerns
• 06:41–08:10 – Reports and examples of alleged voter fraud
• 09:23 – Voter’s personal experience voting without ID
• 10:07 – Surge in Republican registration and Democratic decline in Beverly Hills
• End – Open call for listener participation and experiences

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Memorable Moments

• The palpable shock and candid, sometimes sardonic tone of the commentator discussing California’s transformation.
• Spencer Pratt’s sincerity and unconventional style as a candidate — “I was born for this.”
• Eyewitness accounts of faulty voting procedures highlighting systemic issues.

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Summary:
This episode presents a surprising and cautiously optimistic narrative about California’s sudden swing toward the Republican Party in the primary elections. It intertwines a skeptical, passionate tone about election integrity with real stories of system vulnerabilities and candid calls for civic engagement, all while capturing a moment of political realignment in a historically blue state.

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Transcript

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[Political Commentator]

Never in my wildest dreams would I ever have expected to be starting a video with saying Is California turning red again? I am probably the Internet's biggest resident California hater. I'm sorry. I know there's great people who live in California, but I watched my home state of Colorado be intentionally destroyed by Californians throughout my entire childhood. So it pains me to say I have a lot of hope for California in the next six months after everything that happened with the primary elections yesterday. And you should too. Let's just start by saying that as of right now, Republican Steve Hilton is leading the primary for California governor by like a sizable amount, actually. And looking at the map is probably the most shocking thing I've ever seen come out of California politics. Sacramento red. Fresno red. San Diego Red. Like 70 plus percent of the state red. But maybe even more shocking is the fact that no candidate received a majority vote in the LA mayors race, which means the top two end up going to the next round of elections in November with Karen Bass, the incumbent and current mayor and probably the worst mayor in the United States of America. And that's saying something because there's a lot of competition going to face off against Drumroll please. Spencer Pratt of all people come November, who did way better than any political expert remotely gave him credit for. That's really impressive. Whoa.

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Whoa.

[Voter Sharing Experience]

Just whoa.

[Political Commentator]

Bravo. Karen bass received around 172,000 votes as of what's counted now, while Spencer Pratt received 151,000 votes. And while I am shook, honestly, I'm really not at the same time because of course this guy is the one who is advancing the state of California politics in the LA mayors race to something completely unprecedented. You know, this guy and this guy. I for one, am extremely confused about California's voting system, primary system, because most of the time when you talk about a primary election, you're voting for a pool of candidates for your party to advance to the next stage of the election. There's a Republican primary and a Democrat primary. But California seems to do things a little bit differently with this open primary system where the top two candidates get to advance to the next stage unless some someone gets a majority of the vote. So for example, if Spencer Pratt or Karen bass had received 51% of the vote, now there wouldn't be the next stage of the election in November. I think, fact check me on that one, Californians. In the wake of his second place win secured, Spencer Pratt is now challenging Karen Bass to a weekly debate every Friday until election day in November. Out in the open, out in front of the people of Los Angeles. Listen to this.

[Spencer Pratt]

You know, I love debating her on NBC. I look forward to a couple more on NBC and Fox. We can do debates every Friday if she would like, because this actually became my most favorite thing to do. So yes, as many debates as Mayor Bass would like. Oh, I mean, she knows it's on. She's. I hope she's ready, you know, because I am. I literally could not be more excited.

[Political Commentator]

It is a campaign that started because he lost his home in the Palisades fire. And some of his most gripping content as a a candidate has been him walking through the Palisades neighborhood describing how completely broken the people still are because of largely Karen Bass's complete failure of leadership. But what I love the most about Spencer Pratt completely outperforming everyone's expectations is who he gave the credit to immediately.

[Spencer Pratt]

Well, obviously God wanted five more months of me exposing all the failures of our mayor. So it's going to be a fun ride. I hope she's ready. Are you ready? I mean, I was born for this.

[Political Commentator]

Clearly, God clearly wanted me to have five more months to expose the complete failures of our current leadership. Yes. And if Spencer Pratt was able to pick up this much momentum up to this point, I have no doubt the next five months could completely change the fabric of Los Angeles politics. We may need to take a trip out to California to see how bad things have really gotten for ourselves because it's been a minute since I've been in la. Now the big question remains. Will elections remotely be secure enough in California to secure a win for Steve Hilton in the governor's race or for Spencer Pratt in the Los Angeles mayor's race. And that's the part I don't feel so warm and fuzzy about. You guys probably already know. California has some of the worst election laws in the entire country when it comes to voter id, making sure you are the person who says that you are that person.

[Spencer Pratt]

All right, that's. That's good. It's hard to trace, I guess.

[Political Commentator]

Wait, you changed Your name to McLovin? Securing mail in ballots, preventing duplicate votes, and a whole host of other problems that leaves a lot in question for the security of elections happening in California. California may be so back, and America is so back right now. I don't know if you guys are seeing this, but like every single clothing company known to man is doing some sort of a 254th of July Americana summer collection. I am so here for it. And as a mom especially, my new favorite thing is making sure that family matching PJs do not live only on Christmas. They are for every holiday, every occasion. And that includes my favorite holiday, the fourth of July coming up right around the corner. Last week I told you guys about Holy Pals, the very first ever pajama company to hit the market making family matching PJs inspired by the word of God and Jesus Christ. And Holy Pals is rolling out. Drumroll, please. The coolest 4th of July collection of all time. These cute PJs say set free in Christ. And they have matching ones for your babies, for your moms and dads, for everyone in the whole family. I am so excited to wear these on all of our family vacations this summer and especially for America. 250 coming up in just a couple of weeks. If you guys go onto their website, you can Pre order these PJs that you absolutely will want for your Fourth of July vacation between now and June 21st. And all of the orders will ship the week of June 22nd. And if you spend more than $100 on their website, you can get a free $29 tote included in your order as well. Head to holy pals.com and use code ISABELLE for 20% off your order. Rock these bad boys all summer long. Because you know I will be. Nick Shirley just exposed a whole lot of this in his breakdown of the fraud happening in Southern California. And just a few months ago he posted a video saying California is the breeding ground for voter fraud in America. There are millions of people who vote with no id. They have month long election processes to keep Counting ballots way after election day. Inaccurate voter rolls. Dead people are regularly voting. He even found a dog that successfully registered to vote.

[Spencer Pratt]

Oh, my God.

[Political Commentator]

So bring your pets for Spencer Pratt, I guess. And that voter registration is completely based on your signature, not any sort of identification.

[Nick Shirley]

Gloria here by chance because she's 100 years old and she voted last election from here. All right, so they won't even speak to us. Do you know Gloria? She's 100 years old. She voted last election here. She's supposed to live in one of these P.O. boxes. A little strange, right? Sir, have you ever met like a Gloria or anything? She's supposed to live in one of these P.O. boxes. She voted no.

[Political Commentator]

So Nick's just straight up going to UPS stores across the Los Angeles area asking people if they've ever met 100 plus year old probably dead people who are registered to vote at P.O. boxes at the UPS store. Ballots counted, by the way. California, Come on. Not to mention already there were reports in this primary race that happened this week of entire ballot dropboxes being set on fire, probably to prevent Spencer Pratt ballots from remotely being counted vote by mail.

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[Political Commentator]

Oh, that sounds familiar. Anybody remember this? Someone that I even know personally? My friend Xavier Derusso who works for Prager U, posted this video that he actually had to vote somewhere that he does not currently live. And they refused to to check his ID when he cast his vote for Spencer Pratt. Refused?

[Voter Sharing Experience]

I just voted in California in a city that I literally was not registered to vote in. And I'm not even joking. I tried to go vote in the city of Beverly Hills, but it showed in the system that I still lived in my old address. So I just told them. I was like, oh, well, I moved in January. Do you want me to get some proof? And they're like, no, it's fine. We'll just like change your registration here. And I was like, so you don't need to see my id. You don't need any kind of proof that I actually live in this city? And they're like, nope, just fill out this document here and then sign saying that you're telling the truth. And they just gave me a ballot. I voted. I voted in Beverly Hills today. One of the most expensive wealthy, powerful, influential zip codes in America without any kind of proof. That is how easy it is to vote as an illegal or somebody that has ill intent in this country. Don't arrest me because I really do live there.

[Political Commentator]

I can vouch for him, he really does live there. But the crazy part about all of this is that even with all of the shenanigans, let's zoom in on Beverly Hills for a second. Voters in Beverly Hills have swung by double digits to the Republican Party as of this week. That's right, there were almost 140,000 new Republican voters registered for this election in Beverly hills and in LA across the board. In 2024 the city voted 70 plus percent for Kamala Harris. But right now, the two Democrat candidates in this mayoral primary hold less than 60% of the vote. Something really big is happening in California and I am so here for it. I do not have boots on the ground in California. Typically my rule in LA is in and out same day. I don't like to spend the night. Sorry, I know and I won't be there for a couple more weeks. I will be there for a work event here in the next few weeks. But I'm dying to know Californians, Angelenos, what the heck is happening in SoCal? And do you think that Spencer Pratt and Steve Hilton even have a chance come the general election in November? Who are you voting for? Let us know in the comments.