Angered over Selection of Inexperienced Election Official, Protesters Target Private Business of Shasta Supervisor

For three out of the last four days, a group of 25-50 protesters have gathered outside the private business of Shasta County Board Chair Kevin Crye. Organizers plan to demonstrate every day through May 12.

They’re angry about Crye’s decision to support the Board’s selection of Clint Curtis, a former computer programmer and Florida-based attorney, as the county’s top elections official. Three Shasta County Supervisors, including Crye, voted to appoint Curtis last week. The other two Supervisors strongly opposed the vote, saying his work history and lack of qualifications make him a questionable choice. 

He was selected over three other candidates who interviewed for the role, all of whom were female and have some background in elections administration, unlike Curtis. Before he can begin his duties as Shasta County’s Registrar of Voters, Curtis must pass a background check, move to the area, and register to vote. The Board’s appointment of Curtis is tentatively scheduled for May 13.

Until then, community members are using protest actions to target Crye’s personal business, an athletic experience for kids called Ninja Coalition HQ. They said they’re there there to disrupt business as usual and advocate for the appointment of Assistant Registrar of Voters Joanna Francescut as the county’s top election official instead of Curtis.

Yesterday, May 5, Shasta Scout observed as groups of protesters lined an area outside the Mt. Shasta Mall where Crye’s business is located. The protest was timed to occur as parents picked up their children from 4-6 pm. A Mt. Shasta Mall security guard monitored the entrance to the Ninja Coalition HQ as a few of Crye’s supporters including Moms for Liberty Chair Leslie Sawyer and community members Michael Kamfolt and Paul Griffes, stood nearby taking video footage of protesters. 

“You don’t attack people’s business,” Kamfolt said, identifying himself as a cattle rancher from Millville. “He didn’t pick somebody for a job and this is what he gets. It’s ridiculous.” The “somebody” he was referring to is Francescut, the county’s Assistant ROV who many locals believe should have been appointed to the position instead of Curtis.

Kamfolt, who at times engaged directly in tense conversations with protesters, told Shasta Scout he’s not a member of the local Cottonwood Militia, just a “good friend” to Crye who will “do anything to help him out.” He said protesters dressed in black had identified themselves as “antifa” and were harassing customers of the Ninja Coalition. 

Kamfolt’s statements were denied by a subset of protesters dressed in black who said they do not identify as “antifa” and have not harassed anyone. They said they have spoken to parents and children entering the facility and offered them snacks, water and information. They wear black, they said, for anonymity and safety.

Emphasizing their commitment to nonviolence and deescalation, protesters expressed concern about a police response to the protest on Friday, which included at least five officers in multiple vehicles.

Benjamin Nowain, an outspoken opponent of Crye who was terminated from Shasta County’s Health and Human Services Agency last year, has helped plan the protests. Nowain says he’s standing up for others in the community by bringing the protest to where he believes it will have the most impact, Crye’s place of business.

Crye was not present at yesterday’s protest but addressed the protest action as part of a Facebook live he posted on Monday, May 5, saying protesters are trying to “bully” him. He called the use of music and bullhorns on Saturday by some protesters “pretty gross” indicating that he feels protesting at a business that serves youth is inappropriate because it may harm children.

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