California Ballot Recount: AG’s Bid to Stop Riverside County Sheriff Fails

A three-judge panel on Tuesday denied California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s emergency petition to halt Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco’s investigation into the November 2025 special election, citing procedural grounds. The court ruled that Bonta should have initially filed the petition in a lower court, rather than directly with the appellate district.

The denial marks a setback for Bonta, who has aggressively sought to curtail Bianco’s probe, arguing This proves a politically motivated “fishing expedition” designed to undermine confidence in the electoral process. Bianco, a Republican candidate for governor, seized over 650,000 ballots last month related to Proposition 50, which temporarily redrew California’s congressional districts.

Proposition 50’s passage, achieved by a margin of over 82,000 votes in Riverside County and more than 3.3 million statewide, was challenged by California Republicans and the Trump administration, but the U.S. Supreme Court denied an emergency petition to block the new maps from taking effect.

Bianco’s investigation centers on claims from a local citizens group alleging that the county’s vote tally was inflated by more than 45,000 votes – a claim emphatically rejected by Riverside County Registrar of Voters Art Tinoco and Bonta. Bianco maintains his office is conducting a legitimate “fact-finding mission” to determine if fraudulent votes were counted, and has appointed a special master to physically recount the ballots. “This investigation is simple: physically count the ballots and compare that result with the total votes recorded,” Bianco said at a press conference Friday.

Bonta’s petition, filed Monday with the Fourth Appellate District, argued that Bianco’s actions were “unprecedented” and threatened to “sow distrust and jeopardize public confidence” in upcoming elections. The Attorney General has repeatedly asserted that Bianco’s office lacks the expertise to conduct a proper recount and that the ballot seizure was “unacceptable.” He also revealed that Bianco obtained a third search warrant on March 19, 2026, adding to warrants issued on February 9 and February 23.

The California Department of Justice (DOJ) stated that the denial was “based solely on where we filed the case and is not a ruling on the underlying merits of the petition,” and that it was evaluating next steps to “ensure a swift and appropriate resolution to this matter.”

Chandra Bhatnagar, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, voiced support for Bonta, calling Bianco’s claims “misleading” and arguing that a sheriff has no legitimate role in administering elections. “The sheriff’s investigation represents a serious threat to voter privacy, undermines our democratic process and raises questions about the misuse of law enforcement authority for political gain,” Bhatnagar said Tuesday.

Bianco responded to Bonta’s petition Monday night, questioning the Attorney General’s motives. “Why in the world would Rob Bonta want that count stopped unless he was afraid of what that count would uncover?” he said in a social media video, adding that the appeals court was “extremely politically biased.”

The outcome of Bonta’s next legal move remains uncertain, as does the fate of Bianco’s investigation and the ongoing recount of Riverside County ballots.