UCLA Voting Rights Project says a criminal investigation does not override election law
Legal advocacy organization representing four Riverside County voters in Cervantes v. Bianco
“Sheriff Bianco did not follow those procedures before seizing the ballots and beginning to count them outside the custody of Riverside County election officials. … What we’ve asked the court today to do is make sure sheriffs and everybody else in this state understand the Elections Code applies to them as well … A criminal investigation is not a blanket license to ignore California election laws”
Source and context
Official statement
About this source
Press release from the UCLA Voting Rights Project, which represents four Riverside County voters, on the August 24 oral argument in Cervantes v. Bianco.
Before the quotation
The Project filed the voters' petition on March 25 and argued Cervantes v. Bianco before the California Supreme Court on August 24.
After the quotation
Xavier Becerra, a senior adviser to the Project and an attorney of record, said the group hoped for a swift decision protecting the ballots.
How this statement is classified
Responding to: Elections Code section 15551(d) requires that voted ballots never be taken from the elections official's custody, so Sheriff Bianco violated it when he removed the Riverside County ballots from the Registrar of Voters, even under a search warrant.
The label describes this statement’s response within the context above.
Why this label?
The reference point is the sheriff's seizure and handling of the ballots. The Project says Bianco bypassed the procedures for custody and counting and that a criminal investigation does not excuse ignoring election law, which expressly rejects the seizure.
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- Chad Bianco
Was Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco's seizure of about 650,000 ballots lawful?
Explore the case context, sources and public responses.
More from this case
Read the full caseCampaign Legal Center
“Sheriff Bianco’s illegal seizure of ballots is a dangerous escalation and blatantly unlawful intrusion by law enforcement … In Riverside County and a growing number of localities across the country, actions like this risk disrupting critical chain of custody procedures, endangering sensitive voter data, sidestepping recount and contest procedures, and amplifying baseless claims, ultimately undermining the freedom to vote.”Read statement
“Governor Gavin Newsom today released the following statement in response to the California Supreme Court ruling Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco illegally seized hundreds of thousands of ballots from last year’s special election … Today’s ruling affirms that in California we will defend democracy — using every branch of government. And the new laws I signed just last week add new protections so attacks like this cannot happen again. People deserve to know their ballot is counted and secure, and in California we will do everything we can to protect that constitutional right — this year, and beyond.”Read statement
“Election fraud can and should be investigated. But misuse of criminal investigative tools — without any evidence that a crime was committed — needlessly undermines trust in our elections system and in law enforcement. After the Sheriff took the extraordinary step of obtaining warrants to seize control over voted ballots, I made a modest request to him: pause your investigation, preserve all evidence, and provide the information needed for my office to review the allegations. Instead, Sheriff Bianco pressed forward with the seizure of hundreds of thousands of ballots. The Court has now made clear that this kind of defiance cannot stand, that the Attorney General has the authority to intervene when sheriffs take improper action, and that voted ballots belong in the custody of elections officials.”Read statement