Opinion: I ran Shasta County’s elections for 20 years. I know Trump’s playbook
“To my fellow registrars and election officials across the country: I know what it feels like when the pressure arrives … Remember, your oath is to the law and to every voter, not to a president, a party or a mob.”
This opinion piece was submitted by former Shasta County Clerk and Registrar of Voters Cathy Darling Allen. Do you have an opinion to share? Find our guidelines here.
For 20 years, the voters of Shasta County, California, trusted me to run their elections. They elected me county clerk and registrar of voters five times. Most recently, in 2022, I won nearly 70 percent of the vote in a county Donald Trump carried by more than 60%. My job was never to care who won. It was to make sure every eligible voter could cast a ballot and every ballot was counted accurately.
Then came 2020. I witnessed firsthand the beginnings of a concerted effort to undermine public trust in our elections that has continued to this day.
When Trump refused to accept his loss, his lies about rigged voting machines found fertile ground in my county. People who believed them turned their anger on the people who counted the votes. I was accused in public meetings of sedition, treason, even witchcraft. I was followed to my car. Someone installed a trail camera behind the building where we counted ballots. Self-appointed “observers” crowded my staff on election night.
Then intimidation became public policy. In 2023, our board of supervisors repeated Trump’s false claims, cancelled our voting machine contract and ordered every ballot counted by hand. I warned that it would take about 1,300 workers and at least $1.6 million, and would make results less accurate, not more. The Legislature had to step in. A grand jury investigated my office again and again on the strength of those conspiracy theories. It never found wrongdoing.
In late 2023, at 55, I decided to step down due to health issues related to stress, retiring in May 2024, two years early.
I’m sharing all this not to relitigate what happened in my county but to show the lasting damage of these lies. This is about stolen trust, lost expertise and a community still fighting over a lie six years later.
And with the midterm election upon us, Trump is running the same playbook again. With his party in jeopardy of losing control of Congress and historically low approval numbers, Trump has already begun sowing doubt, spinning lies and escalating interference.
His Justice Department has sued California multiple times, in attempts to seize the private data of 23 million California voters and intimidate county elections officials. In the week Californians began voting, reports surfaced of a 45-day immigration enforcement surge across our state, including an operation near the path voters walk to a ballot drop box in Santa Maria, which can deter many voters from going to vote.
The goal is the same as it was in Shasta: sow enough suspicion and fear that people stop trusting the count, or stop showing up.
What happens here in California matters for the rest of the country. In California, we have spent decades expanding access to the ballot, giving voters more ways to cast their ballot. That’s exactly why the Trump administration is so invested in attacking us.
As someone who did this work faithfully for two decades in a district that voted overwhelmingly for Trump, I can tell you that California’s elections are safe and secure.
Every Californian votes on paper, so there is always a physical record.
Every mail ballot is checked against the voter’s registration and signature before it counts.
Every ballot is tracked through a documented chain of custody, and every voting system is state certified and tested before each election.
Results are audited by hand before certification.
So when you hear Trump making false accusations because California is “still counting,” understand what is really happening: Election workers are ensuring an accurate count of every vote. Checking signatures in the state with the largest number of voters takes time, and ballots postmarked by Election Day still count if they arrive within a week. A careful count is proof the safeguards are working.
To my fellow registrars and election officials across the country: I know what it feels like when the pressure arrives, when your work is attacked in public meetings and when your staff are afraid to answer the phone.
Remember, your oath is to the law and to every voter, not to a president, a party or a mob.
Count every ballot. Certify the results voters produced. Be transparent, correct mistakes openly, and never confuse intimidation with oversight. Document every threat. Lean on each other.
You are not alone. Millions of voters who are and will be casting their ballots are counting on you and are with you. I am, too. I stepped away from public office, but I did not step away from this fight.
Do you have a correction to share? Email us: editor@shastascout.org
Comments (67)
Leave a comment
Related Articles
Underground Good: Sara Hoxie
‘Will had so much energy and love to give. He’d walk into a room, and his personality would drive everything there. He kicked up a lot of dust, and we’re just not going to let that dust settle.’
Underground Good: Enora Ilboudo
“Aside from clothes and food, sometimes we’ll hear from people who don’t feel connected to their families or need to talk to someone and don’t have anyone else they can go to. People are finding their community here at the center and that keeps me motivated when I’m working here.”
Opinion: Healthcare and Food Benefits are at Risk in Rural California. Will the Governor and Legislature Act?
The need for health care, behavioral health treatment, and food assistance will not disappear because federal funding drops. The burden simply shifts downstream to counties — forcing cuts to emergency rooms, food banks, sheriff’s deputies and already-overwhelmed local systems.
Thank you, Cathy, for your years of service and continued commitment to fight for fair and free elections. I am sorry for the abuse and opposition you faced in that fight here in Shasta County. You are an inspiration and model for us all.
I have read and re-read the opinion piece by Cathy Darling Allen. There is nothing there that would reveal her own personal political persuasion….. except, of course, if defending the sacred integrity of a free and fair election has become a “liberal Democrat” ideal. God, I hope that is not true!
Well, with one well considered and insightful article, Cathy Darling Allen has certainly inspired both admiration and wrath. While disagreement is a normal part of discussion, disparagement need not be. As we read through these dozens of comments, it is interesting to note the variety of communication styles and their effects on our perceptions of each speaker.
Thank you, Cathy, for your professionalism, courage and serving ALL Shasta County voters for two decades.
Typical Democrat bloviating. Can Democrats ever speak the truth? Elections are a disaster under Cathy. No transparency or election security. Clint Curtis is head and shoulders better than Cathy at managing elections. She is a very biased liberal Democrat.
Why are you attacking the facts laid out before you by an honest public servant? Or have you decided only you know what is the truth, even though you know nothing about the process. Arrogant ignorance is the maga way.
Can MAGA ever speak the truth? Anyone who doesn’t see how unfairly Cathy was treated or who thinks Clint Curtis isn’t trouble, isn’t thinking right. They are thinking “far-right”. 😉
Pretty sure she is, was, and always has been a Republican 🙄
It saddens me to see the willful ignorance of the MAGA cult. trump was right when he said he could shoot someone dead in Times Square and his followers would still adore him. Beyond sad for America. That said thank you Ms Darling for your service to this county.
Hey buddy, until very recently I was a fiscal conservative and I supported Cathy 100%.
.
One of the reasons that I am now just an independent voter is because of the false witness you election deniers are bearing against people like Cathy.
.
You know that thing from the Bible, “thou shall not bear false witness against thy neighbor”? That thing that is supposed to be an important conservative value?
.
I will not support a bunch of people “who talk the talk, but do not walk the walk”.
.
Cathy actually lived up to what she said. Did she make mistakes? Sure, because we’re all human. But nowhere near the number of mistakes that our current ROV has made. Mistakes that are always because of someone else and never his fault. She would actually fess up to any mistakes she made and then proceed to right those mistakes.
.
But you know what, most intelligent people can recognize that you don’t have much to support your argument when all you are doing is resorting to name calling. Like in your comment above.
Hey Bruce, so what isn’t the truth in what Kathy said above?
.
Be specific.
.
Go on, I challenge you.
Cathy never cared about the different parties, just elections that followed the law. You missed the point.
As far as Curtis, he’s been a joke since the day he was appointed. Do you remember when hew would go to the BOS meetings asking for a million plus dollars for improvements without any documentation as to where he was going to spend the money. Even Crye shot him down.
Thank you Kathy for your years of service and for not stepping away from this fight for free and fare elections. Your words of encouragement to election workers couldn’t come at a better time.
Thank you Cathy Darling. You did a great job during your time. I really appreciate you and miss you. You are “the real deal.”
January cannot get here soon enough. I am appalled each time Clint Curtis and Trump make an unfounded allegation about voter fraud. I do feel like Shasta County Citizens are becoming aware of the disorder that Curtis has brought to the election office. I’m holding my breath on the upcoming election because chaos seems apparent in election preparations right now.
Firstly, thank you Ms. Darling for your service to our community. I have spent several years, researching for the truth on all levels of government. I am an Independent. For myself, I was sadly able to prove, and discovered that the Democrat Party on all levels truly “makes bold face lies” to the American people along with many bias media representatives. The Truth is there, a person must take the time to find it; and therefore, I disagree with what Ms. Darling indicated in her Opinion Article, as I do believe she shows her bias.
I was honored to serve under you for 12 years. May your words of encouragement help election workers everywhere.
Cathy, thank you for your years of service to all the voters of Shasta County. I remain deeply sorry that the stresses caused by a group of delusional, hostile people whose grievances have been revealed by multiple investigations to be baseless and often ridiculous nevertheless led to your early retirement for health reasons. I’m glad that you still care enough about fair and transparent elections to take the time to write this opinion. I am so looking forward to the return to sanity and normalcy around Shasta County elections in 2027, when I–as a Democrat–will accept local results that often do not go the way I’d prefer, while results on the state level often–but not always–do. The way elections work!
Cathy, your appointed replacement has been a disaster, but he mirrors the disastrous BoS majority that appointed him. Your protege and now elected RoV, Joanna, will carry on your excellent work, and we will once again have fair elections. Thank you for your decades of service.
Thank you Cathy for leading us in professional,organized and fair elections.
Thank you for your tireless service as the ROV and writing this opinion piece. You hit the nail on the head.
Thank you Cathy.
Thank you Ms. Darling-Allen for this reminder of what elections once were and what they have turned into. The Big Lie that has infected a healthy voting system and the election deniers, like Shigella. But reasonable voters have become immune to much of the accusations as the Lie has been proven false. On January 4, 2027 we have the opportunity to bring back the pre-Lie clam and routine of the elections here in Shasta County.
I have voted in every election since the early 1960s. It is only since the 2016 election that elections have become a battlefield. And here in Shasta County a soap opera.
Ms. Francescut, if supported rather than undermined by those who would use election denial as a way to manipulate that portion of the population susceptible to incitement without critical thought, may have the opportunity to restore the good name of the County Clerk/ROV and quell the unnecessary drama surrounding voting in our county.
Again, Thank you Ms. Darling-Allen for your years of service and continued support of free and fair elections conducted by professionals who are devoted to the voting public and the law rather than the Big Lie.
Thank you Kathy Darling for jumping back into the hot water of public comment to lay out your experience in our community. I believe all of your comments on nefarious political play are backed by widespread public investigation and their publicly available results. I hope your letter travels far and wide giving insight and courage to poll workers and public alike. Thank you!
Federal Law: “It shall be unlawful for any alien to vote in any election held solely or in part for the purpose of electing a candidate for the office of President, Vice President, Presidential elector, Member of the Senate, Member of the House of Representatives, Delegate from the District of Columbia, or Resident Commissioner, unless—”.
What is the State of California (and Shasta County) doing to ensure that the votes collected for Federal Offices aren’t tainted? California has gone out of it’s way to ensure that it CAN’T certify that the votes collected for federal offices are legal by Federal law. DOESN”T THAT GIVE YOU ANY CONCERN?
So do you finally have some evidence of that so-called mass election fraud that’s been going on for years all over the place??
.
Come on, let’s see it…
.
Oh that’s right. For the last couple of years you election deniers and our current leader has been doing their best to try to turn up fraud or malfeasance to back your false claims. If there was mass election fraud on the scale that you election denialists claim, then you would see evidence of it all across the US. It would be almost statistically impossible to not turn up evidence on a grand. Despite your best efforts, you still have close to zero. .
.
It seems that most of the time when there is genuine election fraud, it makes news because it’s actually so scarce. Attention getting, but scarce nonetheless.
.
If anything, all the evidence seems to point to elections being pretty safe and secure.
.
Look, you got your man inside the office here locally and he still hasn’t provided any proof or evidence of that fraud. He is, however, royally mucking things up.
.
Speaking for myself, why should I be concerned when you have nothing to back up your claims? I would be concerned if there was some actual proof.
Ms. Darling,
Thank you for your service and your honest experience as a public servant. I appreciate your encouragement to vote.
Thank you for your actions and voice during this chaos.
There is nothing more sacred in Democracy than our right to vote. Thankyou, Kathy, for your years of service and your explanation of the process. Voting is a right AND a responsibility!
Shame on you Cathy Darling. If division is what you are trying to dissuede, this is a very poor attempt. In fact i would say that you are making the division greater. Please be part of the solution not the wreckage.
Agree
Boy SHE SURE GIT POLITICAL QUICK! She is so obviously biased, for someone who claimed neutral. Disgusting Cathy.
Agree! So true.
When one party plays dirty all the time it’s easy and accurate to point it out. So very tired of equal time while the maga party is destroying America on multiple levels, both internally and in the world. Great War, love the price of gas and groceries. Are we great yet?
Thank you, Cathy, for speaking out and speaking the truth.
Thank you, Cathy! Voice of damned reason when such voices are scarce.
I feel more secure knowing you are still in the fight, Cathy.
You were among the finest ROVs I’ve ever had the pleasure to serve.
I’m so happy Joanna is returning. Hurry January!
Kathy,
Despite your comments regarding fairness, accuracy and impartiality your rhetoric criticizing Donald Trump is not only biased but could be construed as a form of attempt to influence the vote.
You are influential, not just some “average citizen”, you know.
Considering the social divisionary, polarizing and economic disasters of the obama and biden administration’s policies, and actions, plus the outrageous attacks of this president by the media it seems to me that claims of impropriety may be well justified.
LOL
Kathy Darling is a patriot who is courageous enough to tell the full truth about the Trump and his cult members who used Trumps Big Lie to seize control of our county government. We all watched Trump try to steal the votes of 81 million Americans on Jan 6 with his fake electors scheme. We all watched his mob of cult members storm OUR capitol, beat up Capitol Police, break up OUR capitol and smear their shit on OUR walls. We all watched as Pence refused to carry out the treason and we all read Trumps tweets to the mob vilifying Pence. We all watched the congressional hearings and witnessed Bill Barr, Trumps own Attorney General, testify under oath and in front of the world that Trumps election fraud claims were, “BULLSHIT”. Those who still try to exempt Trump from what he did that day, what he has tried to do every day since and what he is attempting to do on the coming election day are traitorous cowards. Hats off to Kathy Darling.
I disagree. Cathy has served as ROV through several presidents and administrations and is stating firsthand that the tRump administration has tried to interfere with elections in the past and is already doing so with this upcoming election, and not just in California. They arent even hiding their attempts to do so. She has every right to express her opinion based on her knowledge and experience as a retired ROV. You’re barking up the wrong tree.
LMAO… You so silly.
.
She was a million times better than the current ROV who does nothing but try to push his partisan politics every chance he gets.
.
She was ROV for 20 years, and as mentioned above, she won almost 70% of the vote in a county that elected Trump…
.
You’re fooling yourself if you don’t think that a lot of that support was from conservatives/republicans.
The one thing I agree with you is there have been some pretty “outrageous attacks of this president” on our democracy.
.
(Freudian slip, perhaps?)
.
“Impropriety”? LOL. Fake pearl clutching. Get over yourself.
Are you kidding me? djt is not a politition, is not a good leader. He brought all of the angst and disapproval upon him. Lets do a postive/negative score sheet on his personality and effectivness. He started off disparaging all of his opponants. No, he doesn’t get a pass, and she is correct.
You are in a cult of lies, ignorance and misinformation… but as you are still somehow a trumpy supporter, clearly you can’t fix stupid.
MAGA nonsense
Another Koolaid drinker with endless bottom
Kathy is a good person, dEmARCO you are not
T DEMARCO ~ Cathy said what needed to be said as a retired ROV. May I suggest you continue to vote because it will count. If it is for trump, OK! Majority vote wins!
She is a private citizen and has the right to express her views.
Spoken like a true maga.
You forget she is no longer in the registrar position and may politically speak her mind. You may not like what she has to say but she now has the same rights as you.
Trump is a divider, not a uniter. He will go down in history as a thin-skinned sore loser. Impropriety alleged by perpetuating the Big Lie is, well, a big lie. If you have any familiarity with the checks and balances in our election laws, you would conclude our elections are fair, accurate and trustworthy regardless of how many times Trump says they’re not.
Thank you Kathy for allowing some insight into the denier’s thought process. An interpretation of Ms. Darling-Allen’s comments that entirely miss the point. The point that Registrars of Voters should only be invested in following the law and responsible to all of the eligible voters. That they shouldn’t be intimidated by those lead to believe, without proof, that the elections results are somehow manipulated. That the ROVs remain neutral and nonpartisan. And they report results accurately and without prejudice regardless of the outcome.
Oh no did someone lightly criticize your orange daddy? Maybe you can find a safe space on Little St James Island with dementia addled Donny?
seems like you are attempting to influence the vote
so only “average citizens” get to express opinions?
The KoolAid is really really addictive!
T DeMarco, she has not any obligation to the people of our county, and I hope you are not one of the hate filled and poorly educated persons that attacked her amazing character. And then,… there is you’re unfounded bs about Obama and Biden. What a hypocrite
Agree.
Every accusation from these people is an admission, straight up..
Now Cathy is a true Patriot. Thank you Cathy for writing this piece and thank you so much for your years of service making sure our elections were done right.
Kathy is obviously very biased and politically divisive.
So true!
absolutely. thank you cathy
Incredibly Professional ~ I’m so sorry you have endured the pressures of a discriminatory BOS. Thank you Kathy,for the amazing integrity you have shown for all the years served us.
Amen.