GOP California governor candidate seizes over 500,000 ballots in disputed election probe

Bianco held a news conference saying his office had launched the investigation after receiving a complaint from a local citizens group about the ballot count from a November 2025 special election on redistricting - (Watchara Phomicinda/The Orange County Register via AP)

A California sheriff, who is also a gubernatorial candidate, has seized more than half a million ballots from a November special election, citing an investigation into an alleged ballot count discrepancy.

Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, a Republican, took possession of the ballots from county election officials, who have publicly disputed his claims.