President Donald Trump predicted that "great trouble and consternation will follow" if Democrats succeed in what he described as a "crooked" and "rigged" Los Angeles mayoral primary election.

"Has anybody been watching the CROOKED Election going on in California," Trump wrote late Sunday night on Truth Social. "Two great Republican Candidates are being cheated, and so is America, which if the Dumocrats are able to fulfill their mission, great trouble and consternation will follow. Watch this 'Election' closely!!!"

Trump renewed those concerns Monday morning while sharing an X post from Rep. Abe Hamadeh, R-Ariz., who criticized California's election system after vote tallies shifted in the Los Angeles mayoral race.

"No way this could have happened. Rigged Election!" Trump wrote.

Hamadeh had reposted a Decision Desk HQ projection showing Los Angeles City Council member Nithya Raman securing the second runoff spot in the nonpartisan mayoral primary.

Hamadeh argued that California is "incapable of running free and fair elections" and called for federal oversight of elections in the state.

According to a Newsmax projection, Raman has clinched a place in the November runoff against incumbent Democrat Mayor Karen Bass.

Bass leads the field with about 35% of the vote, while Raman maintains a narrow lead over Republican candidate Spencer Pratt.

Just over 3,000 votes separate Raman and Pratt as ballot counting continues.

Pratt, a conservative and former reality TV star, held second place for several days after Election Day before Raman gradually overtook him as additional ballots were processed.

California's extended vote-counting process has drawn criticism from Republicans, including Trump, who have questioned why late-counted ballots continue to alter race outcomes.

Under California law, mail ballots postmarked by Election Day can be counted if they arrive at election offices within seven days.

Election officials say the lengthy process is normal and occurs because every registered voter receives a mail ballot.

The Associated Press reported that Democrats tended to return ballots later in the voting period, which analysts say helps explain why Bass and Raman gained ground as additional votes were counted.

Meanwhile, the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles announced Friday that it had opened multiple election-fraud investigations related to California elections and assigned a federal prosecutor to observe operations at the county vote-counting center.

County officials must certify final results by early July, leaving thousands of ballots still to be counted in the closely watched race.