State officials have sent a warning to Huntington Beach leaders as the city considers placing voter ID and drop-off box monitoring laws on the ballot.
Attorney General Rob Bonta and Secretary of State Shirley Weber sent a joint letter to the city last week, stating they are "ready to take appropriate action to ensure that voters’ rights are protected, and state election laws are enforced.”
Bonta and Weber wrote that a voter ID requirement would conflict with state law, which requires only a name and address to be provided at voting time. Although it is illegal for ineligible voters to cast a ballot, California purposely keeps required documentation simple to avoid voter suppression.
Monitoring drop-off ballot locations would also be against the law, said Bonta and Weber. They noted that “county elections officials — not city officials — are responsible for establishing the number and location of ballot drop boxes, setting ballot collection and chain of custody procedures, and maintaining security at such locations.”
The council is set to consider the proposals at its meeting today, October 5.