Shasta supervisors censure election official Clint Curtis, citing misconduct against staff

Months after some Shasta supervisors first suggested censuring County Clerk and Registrar of Voters Clint Curtis, a majority of the board has finally voted to do so.

Shasta County Supervisor Matt Plummer took the strongest stance on the censure.

“I think we owe it to … our county employees,” Plummer said, “to say that you need to follow the personnel codes and if you don’t, there are going to be consequences to the extent that we can take them.”

The supervisor spent close to 15 minutes at the board of supervisors meeting this morning litigating his case against Curtis before voting to censure him. He used the time to share details of the investigative reports, outlining how he weighed the veracity of the witness interviews in response to concerns from some in the audience that the process was unfair.

The formal rebuke came in response to two investigative reports, one of which was produced internally by the county and the other by a third-party investigator. The investigations substantiated findings that Curtis had engaged in misconduct against staff that included verbal abuse, threats of violence and retaliatory actions.

Plummer was joined in the censure by Supervisors Allen Long and Chris Kelstrom, who each spoke briefly on the topic before voting to formally rebuke the Shasta election official. Both, like Plummer, focused on the need to safeguard Shasta’s employees. Kelstrom was one of three supervisors who voted to appoint Curtis last year over the strong objections of Plummer and Long, along with the majority of the vocal public.  

Supervisor Kevin Crye was absent from today’s meeting due to medical reasons, according to the county. That left Supervisor Corkey Harmon as the lone holdout against the censure. He maintained his steadfast support for Curtis, despite attempts by both Plummer and Long to convince him of the necessity for the rebuke.

“It’s a no. It’s not going to happen. I’m not going to change my mind,” Harmon said, surprising many in the audience who are used to him voting in lockstep with either Kelstrom, Crye or both. 

Harmon’s resistance was based on his claim that people he trusts have told him alternate versions of the events outlined in the investigation. He said he has to trust his gut as a business owner and manager, noting that he believes Curtis to be a good person though “a little different,” adding that he doesn’t think a censure will accomplish anything.

Before the censure was approved, about three dozen members of the public spoke out during public comment. Some issued strong statements against Curtis that outlined his missteps in office since last year, including his decision to exclude Shasta Scout from press releases, something the board unanimously condemned when it occurred.

Others praised Curtis’ approach to running elections while attacking other county officials, including County Counsel Joseph Larmour, who they referred to in various terms as a political enemy.

At times Curtis’ supporters also engaged in misogynistic commentary about the dangers posed by women working in the elections office, an apparent reference either to current female election staffers or former Assistant ROV Joanna Francescut, who defeated Curtis in the June election and is scheduled to take his seat in January.

Shasta County Office of Education Board member Teresa Roberts was among those who referenced the allegedly nefarious nature of the female gender. 

“I’ve got five sons, and the one thing that I told them when they started to get into high school was watch out for the girls, because they can be the most vindictive, backstabbing, vicious creatures you can come across,” she said. 

As she spoke, a student seated in the audience raised his hand in agreement with her as he nodded along. 

Other public commenters lashed out against Kelstrom, warning him that he’s losing support for reelection as he faces a runoff this fall. Local election activist and staffer Patty Plumb had some of the strongest commentary against the current board chair.

“Chris, we campaigned hard for you, and you are shameless,” Plumb railed, pointing to Kelstrom. “You’ve lost your moral compass. You’ve been in bed with these whores at the state … and you don’t even have a clue what’s going on. I’m so embarrassed that you don’t even stand for anything.”

Kelstrom responded by saying that he’s taken attacks from those who support Curtis for the last year, including threats. He emphasized that his decision today was a reflection of how important it is to stand with the employees of Shasta County, noting that his own experiences with Curtis reveal what he sees as a lack of integrity.

Curtis also spoke during public comment, centering his remarks in part around his intent to sue the county, amid some laughter. “I’d like to thank everybody who came up to support me,” he said, “and I would like to thank the other half because you’re going to be essential for damages.”

He also made mention of alleged criminal activities by staffers in the elections office, saying he had evidence of employees “bypassing the security system and breaking into the locks.” 

“So maybe, if you can’t believe like you should and give a fair chance to both sides, we’ll just have to show what the other side does,” Curtis said. He added that some election staffers are “bad people” who “should not be near any election.”

Shortly after being censured, Curtis invited members of the media back to the Market Street elections office, where he showed a video of the alleged security violation by election staffers. He allowed members of the media to record their own videos of security footage, which showed one member of his staff opening a door without the use of a keycard.

Asked if he had queried the employee on the reason they had entered the room or why they hadn’t used the keycard, Curtis said no.

“I never did, because you’ll find out more by not saying anything than by saying something,” Curtis explained, saying it’s impossible that employees would have had any excuse for “bypassing security and sneaking into” a room in the elections office.

He added that he’s provided the video to both the county administrative office and the FBI. 

Shasta Scout reached out to both a union representative and a county spokesperson for comment, neither of which provided immediate responses on the record. Supervisor Plummer responded to news of Curtis’ next steps by saying his actions immediately after the censure underscore the reason for the formal rebuke.

“To the extent that employees may have done something wrong,” Plummer said, “there are appropriate procedures for a department head to go through. Going to the media without having spoken to those employees is not what county policy dictates, and this further reinforces the rationale for the censure.”

After discussing employee behavior with the media, Curtis took press representatives to an upstairs room at the elections office that’s been locked and sealed for several weeks. He said the space contains ballots from the June election which are awaiting examination by the FBI due to Curtis’ concerns that they “did not look or feel right.” Today, he added that the ballots didn’t smell right, either.

“I had facilities put this lock on and destroy the keys,” Curtis said. “So if someone comes … they have to bring a warrant and a bolt cutter. That’s the only way to get in that room.” 

Asked if the FBI had responded to his queries regarding alleged election irregularities, Curtis claimed representatives of the federal agency were at the Court Street elections office today, adding that he had also spoken to the FBI about his concerns at the federal agency’s Redding office recently. 

A spokesperson for the FBI’s Sacramento office responded to a request for comment this afternoon saying they could not confirm or deny any contacts from the public, or the potential existence of any investigation.

Asked whether the alleged ballot irregularities indicate he did not run a secure election this June, Curtis agreed, saying issues with ballot integrity are an election security problem he can’t solve because they occur before ballots come within his control. He added that he has no hope that the November election will be secure either, unless the federal government intervenes to address election integrity. 

He suggested that President Donald Trump’s proposed SAVE America Act, would provide a solution, saying new voter registration and voter identification procedures, along with an end to mail-in ballots, are what is needed to create secure elections.

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