Five local election activists have submitted a ballot measure proposal that would be illegal to implement, according to an attorney for Shasta County. The Superior Court is being asked to issue a judgement on whether the Elections Office should continue to process the ballot measure paperwork at taxpayer expense.
County Supervisors haven’t explained why they’re suspending the Elections Commission. The decision was announced after a closed session meeting to discuss a new lawsuit against the Elections Office. That lawsuit includes declarations from two Elections Commission members.
Three new County Supervisors taking their seats in January will result in some new Shasta County Election Commissioners too. Here’s what the Commission has accomplished so far and what might lie ahead.
Three of Shasta County's five Supervisors added the phrase “under duress” in an attempt to fulfill their legal duty to declare the vote while appeasing a small group of agitators who don’t trust local election processes. The phrase, the Board’s attorney said, has no legal meaning.
Jackie LaBarbera hopes to concurrently hold elected seats on two local school Boards. Whether or not she can legally do so depends on whether the offices are "compatible", something that's defined under state law.
Representatives want a hand-count audit of all ballots. Registrar of Voters Tom Toller has repeatedly refused their demand, citing time, cost, and legal restrictions. He is expected to certify Shasta’s vote today.
Almost all of Shasta County's votes have been counted, allowing local elections staff to take the long weekend off after many weeks of intense work. Final election results are expected to be certified on December 3.
Almost another 11,000 B cards also remain to be counted. The Elections Office uses the terms "A Card" and "B Card" to refer to the first and second pages of each November 5 Shasta County ballot.
About 89,000 ballots were cast this election. That means the number counted so far, more than 75,000, includes the majority of votes.
The more-than-200 pages released by the Board of Supervisors last week appear to document typical communications between elections officials and a county attorney over the specifics of grant wording.
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