A judge has temporarily blocked a sweeping election overhaul in conservative Shasta County that sought to sharply restrict mail-in voting, require hand-counted ballots, and impose identification rules on voters. The preliminary injunction, issued Friday, halts Measure B, which was approved by county voters but is now the subject of a legal challenge over a county's authority to rewrite state election laws.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Secretary of State Shirley Weber sued to invalidate the measure, arguing it conflicts with state election requirements. Measure B would have moved Shasta County towards largely one-day, in-person elections, while requiring government-issued photo identification for voters casting ballots at polling places. It also would have severely limited the use of mail and absentee ballots and mandated that election officials hand-count votes. The measure also proposed establishing a separate county voter-registration system instead of using California’s statewide system.
Bonta’s office argued that Shasta County lacks the authority to create its own election system, even as a charter county. In their request for the injunction, Bonta’s office stated that Measure B, a voter initiative to establish a county-specific elections system, is "unlawful." The state warned that allowing the measure to take effect could disrupt elections for the county's more than 116,000 registered voters shortly before the November general election. When the lawsuit was filed in June, Bonta described the measure as "legally indefensible" and in direct conflict with California law, emphasizing that "No city or county gets to unilaterally rewrite our election rules."
Weber similarly argued that the measure would reduce voting access by eliminating widespread mail voting and creating additional barriers for voters. Shasta County is a conservative stronghold in a largely Democratic California.
The county has announced that the November election will proceed under existing rules while the legal challenge continues. The legal challenge emerges amid a broader conflict in California concerning election administration and efforts by conservative groups to implement stricter voting requirements, citing concerns about election security and fraud. Supporters of Measure B aimed to increase reliance on in-person voting and hand counts. However, state officials maintain that California already has safeguards in place for voter registration, ballot handling, and election administration.
The outcome of this case could have implications beyond Shasta County, particularly as California voters prepare to consider Proposition 39 in November. That statewide proposal would introduce additional voter identification and citizenship verification requirements. For the present, Measure B remains suspended, ensuring Shasta County's November election will proceed under the system used throughout California.