News writer
The holiday season just got a whole lot brighter for one lucky Mega Millions player in California. On December 27, 2024, a single ticket sold in Cottonwood matched all six numbers, snagging a life-changing $1.27 billion jackpot.
This big win marks the fifth-largest Mega Millions jackpot ever and adds another milestone to the history of billion-dollar prizes. The jackpot win in California also marks the highest Mega Millions jackpot won in the state ever, so excitement and record-breaking numbers all around.
What were the winning Mega Millions numbers?
Everyone was anticipating the December 27 drawing, knowing that over $1.2 billion dollars was on the line. The drawing was held and the winning white ball numbers were 3, 7, 37, 49, and 55, and the Mega Ball was 6 with a Megaplier of 3X.
Because of ticket sales, the jackpot grew to $1.27 billion before the drawing was held. That is the fifth-largest jackpot in the game's history. It also happens to be the seventh time the Mega Millions jackpot grew larger than $1 billion.
One lucky ticket in California
After the numbers were revealed, it was determined that one lucky ticket purchased in a small town in Northern California had matched all of the winning numbers to win the jackpot. The winning ticket was purchased at the Circle K, located on Rhonda Road, just off Interstate 5 in Cottonwood.
For selling the winning ticket, the lucky lottery retailer will receive a $1 million bonus from the state lottery — the highest a California Lottery retailer can earn.
In a press release, Joshua Johnston, lead director for the Mega Millions Consortium, said:
Congratulations to our $1.269 billion jackpot winner from California. What an amazing present this holiday season! At an incredibly special time of year, this is both an incredibly special moment for our winner, and for all the great organizations and causes that benefit from lottery ticket sales around the country. Thank you to everyone who plays.
The jackpot winner has one year to come forward to claim their prize. They will have the choice of taking the $1.27 billion over 30 annual payments or taking a lump sum payment valued at $571.9 million before federal taxes. The State of California doesn't tax lottery winnings.
Jackpot run brings millions of winners
While there is one ecstatic ticketholder in California right now, this current jackpot run did create over 30 million winning tickets along the way. The last jackpot winner came during the September 10, 2024, drawing. On that night, we saw one lucky ticket in Texas match all six of the winning numbers, to win the $810 million jackpot.
Since that drawing, there have been over 31.4 million winning tickets across all of the prize tiers during the 31-drawing run. Those winning tickets included 65 second-tier prizes of $1 million or more, with players winning in 26 different jurisdictions, including Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio, and Wyoming.
In addition to the jackpot win, the California Lottery also had two more players match all five of the winning white ball numbers during the December 27 drawing, but not the Mega Ball to win the second-tier prize. One of the winning tickets was sold at the Chevron, located at Blue Oaks Blvd. and Foothill Blvd. in Roseville. The other winning ticket was purchased at Cardenas Market, located at 2405 E. Highland Ave. in San Bernardino. Each of those winning tickets is worth more than $787.500.
Public education wins in California also
While the players in California won big during this current Mega Millions jackpot run, the students won big also. Lottery officials said that during the 31-drawing run, sales from Mega Millions alone raised an estimated additional $89.5 million for public schools.
Carolyn Becker, California Lottery spokesperson, stated:
Raising a little extra money for public education is the whole reason the California Lottery exists. We always love to see our players win giant jackpots, but we take even more pride in knowing that public schools are already winning no matter what. Big jackpots like this help fuel strong sales, which — in turn — helps us raise even more for education.
Enjoy playing the lottery, and please remember to play responsibly.
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