California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) signed a package of election-related bills Saturday aimed at limiting law enforcement interference with ballots and election administration ahead of the November midterm elections.
The measures create new felony penalties for the seizure of ballots and election records, restrict certain law enforcement activity near polling places, expand access to ballot drop-off locations, and offer translated election materials.
Newsom has framed the legislation as a response to what he describes as efforts by President Donald Trump and law enforcement allies to interfere with California elections. The move comes as the governor is being eyed as a contender for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination.
“Donald Trump won’t stop until he can exert dictatorial control over your free vote and disenfranchise millions of people this November,” Newsom said in a statement. “California will stop him at every opportunity.”
“We have no bigger task than fighting to protect the right to vote from interference and meddling — the future of democracy is on the line,” he added.
One of the bills, Assembly Bill 282, makes it a felony to seize or cause the seizure of ballots, election records, or certified voting technology before election results are certified. It also makes it a felony for someone with authority to order a subordinate to seize those materials. The offenses can carry prison sentences of up to four years.
The legislation comes after Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco seized hundreds of thousands of ballots from the 2025 special election as part of an investigation into alleged discrepancies in the vote count. Bianco has said the seizure was part of an investigation into potential fraud.
Another measure, Senate Bill 259, makes it a felony for someone with authority to direct a subordinate to interfere with the delivery or return of a vote-by-mail ballot. It also creates a misdemeanor for someone entrusted with a mail ballot to interfere with its delivery to a voter.
Senate Bill 884 extends the period during which counties must provide ballot drop-off locations and changes restrictions on activities around polling places for elections held between 2026 and 2029.
Assembly Bill 1664 requires local agencies, political subdivisions, and elections officials to notify the California secretary of state and attorney general within one calendar day of learning about certain law enforcement action related to the retention of election records or certified voting equipment.
The package also includes legislation expanding election materials in other languages and protections against voter suppression. Another bill, Assembly Bill 1130, allows administrative, civil, or criminal penalties against people paid by political campaigns to post online political content if they fail to disclose payment.
Newsom also pointed to the Trump administration’s efforts involving mail voting and the deployment of Justice Department election monitors in California as reasons for the new laws.
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In November 2025, the Justice Department sent monitors to five California counties for the state’s special election. The department said the monitors were intended to ensure transparency, ballot security, and compliance with federal law.
The Justice Department has defended election monitoring. The department said it had deployed more than 80 monitors across eight states during the 2026 primary season and noted that it had sent monitors to nine states during the 2022 midterms.