Nov. 4 Special Election: California acts to prevent voter intimidation

CalMatters

Federal and state election monitors will be present at some of California voting sites.

With the Special Election just days away, California Attorney General Rob Bonta  and Gov. Gavin Newsom held a virtual press conference to announce that the state will monitor the federal monitors sent by Donald Trump for the Nov. 4 election day.

Trump's weaponized Department of Justice will deploy election monitors to five California counties on Election Day, the department announced a week ago, in what it describes as an effort to “ensure transparency, ballot security, and compliance with federal law.”

While it is not uncommon to have monitors at the polls, Trump's order is seen by state officials as an an attempt to suppress voting by voters of color through intimidation after the GOP-controlled Supreme Court approved racial profiling by federal agents, including agents from ICE and the Border Patrol.

“Our election laws provide the backbone for a free and fair election, and as California’s top law enforcement officer, I will do everything in my power to protect your right to vote," said Bonta at a press conference.

Attorney General Bonta, a son of immigrant parents from the Philippines, enforces California’s election laws to ensure free and fair elections. In the lead up to the election and on Election Day, the California Department of Justice will be on call to provide assistance to the Secretary of State’s Office in enforcing California’s election laws, as needed, through a team of attorneys and administrative staff located across the state.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Atty General Rob Bonta assure no interference from
federal monitors during the November 4 Special Election.

Arrests of Asians by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have tripled compared to 2024, according to a study by UCLA.

“Voting is one of our most powerful tools for creating change. Thanks to its voters, its leaders, and the work of many organizations, California has become a national leader in making voting more accessible, more convenient, and more inclusive for everyone,” said Shilpi Agarwal, Legal Director at ACLU Northern California. “But rights cannot stand on their own — we must defend and exercise them. And we can do just that by voting — and voting early — in upcoming special election.”

“CAUSE’s 'Together We Vote' programming shows that civic participation can be creative, fun, and community-driven,” said Nancy Yap, Executive Director of the Center for Asian Americans United for Self Empowerment (CAUSE). “Together takes many forms — whether you join us at a community event, drop your ballot in an official drop box, or vote early at a local vote center, every act of voting connects us and strengthens our collective voice.”

The California Voter Bill of Rights is printed in 23 different Asian languages. It is available in English, Spanish, Chinese, Hindi, Japanese, Khmer, Korean, Tagalog, Thai, Vietnamese, Arabic, Armenian, Bengali, Burmese, Gujarati, Hmong, Ilocano, Indonesian, Laotian, Mien, Mongolian, Nepali, Persian, Punjabi, Syriac, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu.

Proposition 50

There is only one issue to vote on Nov. 4: Proposition 50. The measure is in response to Texas legislation redrawing five Democratic-leaning Congressional districts to include more Republican voters as ordered by Trump, who wants to retain the GOP majority in the US House of Representatives. The Texas Governor has already signed the order gerrymandering those districts.

In retaliation, California Governor Gavin Newsom, is targeting five Republican Congressional districts to favor Democrats.

The big difference between the two actions is that California voters will decide whether or not the districts can be redrawn; whereas in Texas, the state legislature and governor rammed it down the throats of the voters, who have no say in the gerrymandering.

The request for federal watchdogs came from the California Republican Party, the Associated Press reports.

A "Yes" vote approves the temporary measure allowing the redistricting. Polls indicate that the proposition will pass in the heavily Democratic state. However, the Republican a long-shot strategy, with no hope of winning the majority in a fair election, is to limit Democratic-inclined voters from casting their ballots.

Voter intimidation

California Democrats immediately denounced the presence of DOJ monitors as a weaponization of the Justice Department against the state’s voters.

Latino American voters are particularly vulnerable to intimidation with ICE and the  Border Patrol arresting, detaining and deporting anyone who looks like an immigrant, even if they are here legally. Media reports have found that at least 170 US citizens have been detained or arrested by poorly trained federal agents.

FYI: The Secretary of State’s Office issued an updated memorandum concerning voter intimidation explaining, in part, that:

• It is a felony for any person to possess a firearm at a voting location or in the immediate vicinity of a voting location.
• It is illegal for any uniformed peace officer, private guard, or security personnel or any person who is wearing a uniform of a peace officer, guard, or security personnel to be stationed at or in the immediate vicinity of a voting location.
• Shirts, hats, or other displays that indicate a person is with "Election Security" or "Ballot Security" or apparel or accessories with any semblance of a logo or display that might be confused with any private guard or security company or government agency are prohibited. This includes observers and anyone who is not there to vote. 

While the majority of California's voters cast their ballots by mail, in the past, most Latino Americans preferred to vote in person as an expression of their patriotism, according to a survey by Latino Community Foundation. The presence of federal watchdogs might dissuade voters at the polls on election day.

However, the survey also found that two-thirds of the Latino voters surveyed said they were at least somewhat worried that ICE or Border Patrol agents could show up at polling places.

State Sen. Anna Caballero, a Democrat representing Merced, a city in one of the targeted districts, told CalMatters that US citizens told her they’re afraid to go outside, especially when there have been reports of ICE sightings in the region.

ICE said that there are no plans to have their agents at polling sites. However, the spokesperson said that if agents are monitoring a suspect and that person goes to the polls, agents can make an arrest at the voting site.

“They’re not going to be allowed to interfere in ways that the law prohibits,” Bonta, a Democrat, told reporters during the virtual news conference. “We cannot be naive. The Republican Party asked for the US DOJ to come in.”

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