California Supreme Court orders sheriff to pause investigation and preserve seized ballots
Apr 8, 2026, 10:13 AM | Updated: 10:44 am
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The California Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered a county sheriff who seized more than half a million 2025 election ballots to pause his probe into election fraud allegations while the judges review the legal challenge against it.
The order came after California Attorney General Rob Bonta, a Democrat, last month asked the court to step in. A voting rights group is also challenging the ballot seizure.
The dispute started in February and escalated last month when Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco seized 1,000 boxes of election materials to investigate a complaint from a local citizens group about the ballot count from a November 2025 special election on redistricting. Local election officials told the county Board of Supervisors last month that the complaint was unfounded. After Bonta ordered Bianco to halt his probe, the sheriff seized another 426 boxes of ballots last week.
Bianco is also one of two prominent Republican gubernatorial candidates in the state. He previously defended his investigation, noting it was approved by a county judge. The sheriff last week said he’s pause the probe because of mounting legal challenges.
