Court Rejects Sheriff's Ballot Seizure
On Thursday, California's highest court decided that Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco has to hand back over 650,000 ballots that his office took earlier in the year. That confiscation, which the court called unprecedented, broke state election rules. Chief Justice Patricia Guerrero explained that giving police free rein over ballots, or letting them process and tally them privately under loose procedures, is itself a serious danger to the integrity of elections.[S1]
The conflict traces back to a November 2025 special election, when Californians approved Proposition 50, a redistricting change intended to offset gerrymandering pushed by Republicans in Texas. It carried comfortably across the state and also prevailed in Bianco's Riverside County by about 80,000 votes. Following the vote, a local citizen activist organization alleged the overall tally did not add up, though county election authorities dismissed that complaint as baseless.[S1]
Legal Battle and New Protections
Bianco's sheriff's office opened a probe into those fraud allegations, securing search warrants to take possession of ballots and other election records. Democratic Attorney General Rob Bonta promptly went to court, contending that Bianco held no jurisdiction over election materials and cautioning that the move was meant to undermine public confidence in voting. Bonta directed Bianco to give the ballots back, and Bianco declined. In court, Bianco's lawyers maintained that the state's top prosecutor had no power to instruct a sheriff regarding a live investigation.[S1]
In a second ruling issued the same Thursday, Guerrero dismissed that position, stating that the respondents' claims amount to an untenable notion that California's foremost law enforcement official should stand by as a mere onlooker while a sheriff conducts an extraordinary probe of clear statewide consequence. Governor Gavin Newsom welcomed the outcome, saying it shows California will safeguard democracy through every branch of government and that voters deserve assurance their ballots are counted and protected. Newsom also signed legislation on Saturday barring anyone from taking ballots the way Bianco did, creating fresh safeguards against similar actions in the future.[S1]
National Context and Concerns
Bianco's ballot inquiry unfolded against a backdrop of Donald Trump repeatedly challenging the 2020 election outcome and pointing to unproven fraud claims. In January, Trump's administration took ballots and other records from a Georgia election office. Certain Republicans in their own states have echoed Trump's voting rhetoric. Election administrators and civil rights organizations have monitored the Bianco matter closely, preparing for the chance that Trump or those aligned with him might attempt to take ballots in November.[S1]
