California Supreme Court Hears 2 Cases Over Sheriff’s Seizure of 650,000 Ballots
Updated
Updated · Democracy Docket · Aug 24
California Supreme Court Hears 2 Cases Over Sheriff’s Seizure of 650,000 Ballots
3 articles · Updated · Democracy Docket · Aug 24
Summary
Two California Supreme Court cases argued Monday will test whether Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco must return roughly 650,000 seized 2025 redistricting ballots and whether Attorney General Rob Bonta can order him to halt the probe.
The dispute grew from a right-wing group’s claim of 45,896 missing physical ballots, but county records cited by Bonta showed 657,219 verified ballots versus 657,322 tabulated — a gap of 103, or about 0.016%.
Bonta says Bianco ignored a directive to pause, seized about 1,000 boxes the same day, and later had staff open ballot boxes and count ballots inside a sheriff’s facility outside normal public election safeguards.
Four voters argue California law keeps voted ballots in election officials’ custody even in criminal or election cases, while Bianco says judge-approved warrants authorized a lawful investigation and challenges the voters’ standing.
The court already ordered Bianco in April to stop investigating the November 2025 election and preserve all seized materials, making the case a broader test of ballot custody rules and the attorney general’s supervisory power over sheriffs.
How will California's strict new ballot custody law impact future investigations by local law enforcement?
Can a county sheriff legally override state election safeguards to seize hundreds of thousands of ballots?
Will the California Supreme Court grant the Attorney General ultimate power to shut down local criminal investigations?
California’s 650,000 Ballot Seizure: Supreme Court Showdown, “Constitutional Sheriffs,” and the Fight for Election Integrity in 2026
Overview
After Riverside County voters passed a redistricting measure in November 2025, a local activist group claimed a large ballot discrepancy, which the county registrar quickly debunked. Ignoring this, Sheriff Chad Bianco—aligned with the national 'constitutional sheriff' movement—launched a criminal investigation and seized over 650,000 ballots. When California’s Attorney General ordered the ballots returned, Bianco refused, leading to lawsuits and intervention by the California Supreme Court. The unprecedented seizure prompted swift legislative action, resulting in Senate Bill 73, which established strict penalties and safeguards to prevent future law enforcement interference in elections and protect ballot security statewide.