State law governing the timing of district attorney and sheriff elections promotes voter turnout, ensures the integrity of our elections
July 26, 2024 - OAKLAND – California Attorney General Rob Bonta and California Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber, Ph.D. today filed a lawsuit against Fresno County challenging its recently passed 
initiative, Measure A, which amended the county’s charter to move elections for district attorney and sheriff away from the presidential cycle to the gubernatorial cycle. In the lawsuit, Attorney General Bonta and Secretary of State Weber allege that this measure is preempted by a state law that explicitly requires counties, including charter counties, to hold elections for district attorney and sheriff during the presidential election cycle, which traditionally has higher voter turnout.
“Our democracy works best when everyone can participate and make their voices heard. Fresno’s Measure A unlawfully conflicts with California law and has the potential to suppress voter turnout,” said Attorney General Rob Bonta. “State election law already provides election timing requirements crucial for voter turnout across the state. Ensuring that a large and more inclusive pool of voters can vote for candidates who reflect their values is a fundamental step to making democracy work. We’re asking the court to block Measure A. The California Department of Justice stands ready to defend the voting rights that make our democracy strong.”
“The broadest participation by the electorate is essential for local elected offices, like sheriffs and district attorneys, because these positions have a direct impact on public safety,” said California Secretary of State Shirley Weber, Ph.D.“Because this attempt to move these elections away from the presidential election cycle violates state law and would suppress participation, we have filed this lawsuit to ensure that the rights of all voters are protected.”
Today’s lawsuit comes after the Fresno County Board of Supervisors approved Resolution 23-287 in August 2023, which, among other things, called a Special Election to place Measure A on the ballot for the March 5, 2024 primary election for the purpose of amending the Fresno County Charter. Having been approved by the county voters at the primary election, Measure A amended Section 15 of the County Charter to set the election dates for sheriff and district attorney in gubernatorial, non-presidential election years.
California election law safeguards the integrity of the electoral process and protects the rights of eligible voters. In the lawsuit, Attorney General Bonta and Secretary of State Weber argue that Measure A is preempted by Assembly Bill 759 (AB 759), which was signed into law in September of 2022 and declares that “an election to select a district attorney and sheriff shall be held with the presidential primary.” AB 759 shifted elections for these local offices from gubernatorial election years to higher-turnout presidential election years in order to ensure a larger and more inclusive pool of voters can weigh in on the important county offices of district attorney and sheriff. The Legislature and elections code further declared that AB 759 applies to both general law and charter counties. The only exception the Legislature allowed was for charter counties that, on or before January 1, 2021, had specified when the elections of district attorney and sheriff would occur. But this exception does not apply to Fresno County’s Charter, which was silent on the timing of these elections prior to Measure A’s passage this year.
According to a 2002 Public Policy Institute of California Research Briefing, about half of the difference in turnout among California cities can be explained by election timing. Since the Progressive Era of a century ago, many California cities have scheduled off-cycle or “local-only” elections, most of which occur in spring. However, local contests that coincided with presidential elections drew 36 percent more turnout than these off-cycle elections. Measure A threatens to unlawfully suppress voter turnout in Fresno County’s elections for the important local offices of sheriff and district attorney.
Attorney General Bonta is committed to protecting the voting rights of people in California and across the country. In 2021, the Attorney General urged the California Supreme Court to protect the voting rights of all Californians. In 2023, the Attorney General warned the City of Huntington Beach on the Proposed Municipal Voter ID Amendment violating California law and joined an amicus brief in support of a challenge to Mississippi’s constitutional provisions that permanently disenfranchise persons convicted of certain felony offenses. In 2024, the Attorney General filed a lawsuit to protect Huntington Beach voters from an unlawful Municipal Voter ID Amendment and reminded voters of their rights under the California Voter Bill of Rights.
A copy of the petition is available here.
Source: CA. DOJ
