MaddowBlog-Why it's so unsettling to see a Republican sheriff seizing ballots in California

[LetMyPeopleVote]

On the heels of the FBI’s seizure of ballots in Georgia, a GOP sheriff has done the same thing in California. The fear is that a template is taking shape.

On the heels of the FBI seizing ballots in Georgia in response to conspiracy theories, a Republican sheriff in California decided to seize ballots in California — also in response to conspiracy theories.

The fear is that a template is taking shape.
www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

— Steve Benen (@stevebenen.com) 2026-03-24T13:02:28.929Z

https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/why-its-so-unsettling-to-see-a-republican-sheriff-seizing-ballots-in-california

In late January, Donald Trump and his team deployed FBI agents to raid an elections office in Fulton County, Georgia, walking away with what local sources called “pallets of ballots.” There was no credible reason to execute such a raid, which was driven by the president’s absurd election conspiracy theories, and it led to speculation about whether, when and where more ballots might be seized.

Roughly seven weeks later, The New York Times reported:

A Republican sheriff who is running for governor of California recently seized more than 650,000 ballots cast in a 2025 statewide election, prompting criticism from the state’s top election official, who said the sheriff’s concerns about fraud ‘lack credible evidence.’

The sheriff, Chad Bianco, on Friday said he was investigating allegations by an election activist group that vote tallies did not match the number of ballots received. … His office confirmed the ballot seizure and investigation on Sunday.

At issue is last year’s Proposition 50 election in the Golden State, which cleared the way for a redistricting plan that will benefit Democratic candidates, as a counter to a comparable plan in Texas that will benefit GOP candidates. Voters in California overwhelmingly supported the effort, approving the ballot measure by nearly 30 points.....

At its root, this is a story about a Republican official whose office has literally nothing to do with election administration, in his county or anywhere else, who decided to seize election materials in response to assorted conspiratorial complaints. This comes on the heels of Trump sending the FBI to seize election materials in Georgia in response to other assorted conspiratorial complaints.

The broader concern is that a template is taking shape, offering precedents for law enforcement to start making plans to seize ballots in areas nationwide — after or even during official counts.

What’s more, the more frequently this happens, the more Americans may be led to believe it’s normal and routine for law enforcement officials to seize and impound ballots — despite the fact that this is neither normal nor routine. Watch this space.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

1. GOP leader slams pro-Trump sheriff as he seizes hundreds of thousands of votes

This idiot has no role in elections. There will be litigation on this stunt

GOP leader slams pro-Trump sheriff as he seizes hundreds of thousands of votes

— Raw Story (@rawstory.com) 2026-03-23T15:00:35.757Z

https://www.rawstory.com/did-proposition-50-pass-in-california

Jon Fleishman, who previously led the California Republican Party as its executive director, slammed Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco on Monday after his office announced it had seized more than 650,000 ballots cast in a 2025 statewide election as part of a fraud investigation — a probe Fleishman called "politically motivated.”

Bianco, an ally to President Donald Trump who’s also running as a Republican for California governor, announced the probe last Friday, citing reports from an activist group that claimed voter irregularities existed in California’s Proposition 50, a referendum overwhelmingly supported by voters that will allow California to redraw its congressional districts.

For Fleishman, however, the probe had no merit.

“It looks to me like it’s a politically motivated effort,” Fleishman said, speaking with New York Times.

“It’s awfully coincidental that he would be taking this high-profile and extreme of an action literally two months before he’s facing a statewide election.”

Fleishman wasn’t the only critic of Bianco’s fraud probe. California Secretary of State Shirley Weber also condemned it as meritless, and said it lacked “credible evidence” and risked “undermining public confidence” in California’s elections.

[Cha]

2. Something needs to happen to

that sheriff .. he needs to be held accountable.

TY

[LetMyPeopleVote]

3. 'A dangerous precedent': California AG sues to stop 'amateur' recount of ballots seized by GOP sheriff

This idiot sheriff is going to lose this lawsuit

Link to tweet

https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/a-dangerous-precedent-california-ag-sues-to-stop-amateur-recount-of-ballots-seized-by-gop-sheriff/

The California Attorney General’s office has asked a court to immediately pause a Republican county sheriff’s investigation into last year’s redistricting referendum election, arguing his seizure of more than 650,000 ballots “threatens to create a dangerous precedent.”

Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco’s move to take custody of the ballots is the third major attack on elections in recent weeks, following the FBI’s conspiracy-fueled raid of a Georgia elections office and an FBI subpoena seeking documents related to an Arizona election audit, which both focused on the 2020 presidential vote.

But a local law enforcement officer seizing all ballots cast in an election is “unprecedented in state history,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta (D) said.

Bonta filed the lawsuit Monday night in state appellate court, asking the court to issue an immediate stay of the investigation behind the ballot seizure and to compel Bianco to comply with his office’s orders.

“The Sheriff’s actions — launching an unprecedented criminal investigation into the special election without identifying any particular crime that may have been committed by anyone, and openly defying the Attorney General’s lawful directives — demand immediate judicial intervention,” the filing said.