Gov. Gavin Newsom announces plan to make seizing California’s ballots a felony
Gov. Gavin Newsom said he and the Legislature are drafting a new bill that would make it a felony to seize ballots before state or local election officials have certified them.
Newsom is expected to give details in a recorded speech Saturday in Sacramento about the proposal, which his office said in a fact sheet provided to reporters was aimed at the White House after federal officials opened investigations into local elections offices in states that President Donald Trump lost in 2020.
“In California, we have a message for anyone considering helping Trump interfere with our election or our count. If you violate California’s laws, if you interfere with our voters, tamper with our ballots, or meddle in our election, you will be prosecuted. It does not matter who gave the order,” Newsom said in remarks given to reporters. “In this state, our vote is sacred.”
California has been a target of election conspiracies due to its slow vote count. In May, ahead of last month’s primary, Newsom urged local elections officials to process ballots faster.
Earlier this year, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco seized 650,000 ballots from the 2025 special election, after a local election deniers group claimed it had uncovered evidence of voter fraud. The California Supreme Court ordered him to stop and agreed to consider Attorney General Rob Bonta’s lawsuit seeking to stop Bianco’s probe.
Newsom’s office did not provide details about the proposal but pointed to earmarks in the recently signed budget to give local elections offices more resources and speed up vote counting.
