Authored by Jacki Thrapp via The Epoch Times,
Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco was ordered by the California Supreme Court on April 8 to halt his investigation into 2025 election fraud allegations so the judges can review the legal challenges that his probe faces.
Bianco, a Republican who is running for California governor, seized more than half a million 2025 election ballots after allegedly receiving complaints from locals.
Then, last month he seized an additional 1,000 boxes of election materials.
Local election officials told the county Board of Supervisors that his decision to take the ballots was unfounded.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta, a Democrat, asked the court to step in and stop the investigation, saying that Bianco did not have authority to take the ballots.
Bianco seized another 426 boxes of ballots last week.
The top court ordered Bianco and his team to “pause the investigation into the November 2025 special election and preserve all seized items.”
“Today’s decision by the California Supreme Court reins in the destabilizing actions of a rogue Sheriff, prohibiting him from continuing this investigation while our litigation continues,” Bonta said in a statement.
The Epoch Times has contacted Bianco’s office for comment.
Bianco’s career in law enforcement extends 30 years.
In 2018 he was elected as the sheriff, coroner, and public administrator of Riverside County.
Bianco entered the crowded California gubernatorial race just over a year ago and edges behind fellow Republican, Steve Hilton, in the latest Berkeley IGS poll.
Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, who may be eying a presidential bid as he exits his current seat in January 2027, applauded today’s ruling by the court.
“Today’s decision is a victory for democracy and the rule of law,” Newsom wrote in an X post on Wednesday.
“This rogue sheriff chased conspiracy theories, tried to undermine our elections, and got the ruling he deserved. Trump and MAGA’s election denialism is a cancer, a danger to our democracy, and it must be stopped.”