A judge has ordered Shasta County to halt placing a measure on the ballot that would change election procedures. The measure calls for hand-counted elections to be completed in a single day with limited exceptions for mail-in ballots, and for a photo ID requirement. It’s believed that the measure would be misleading to voters and, if approved, would never survive a court challenge. Judge Ben Hanna ruled Thursday that the measure cannot appear on the ballot because it contains provisions that would violate state elections laws. Judge Hanna also ruled that “Jane Doe”, as the filer of the petition is known, must reveal her identity within 5 days. Laura Hobbs and the other organizers of the measure are upset by the preliminary ruling, as is appointed Registrar of Voters Clint Curtis. Outside the Courthouse Thursday Curtis called for the termination of County Counsel Joseph Larmour for not defending the measure’s validity in court. The board of Supervisors voted in closed session last week to take no position on the court action.
-Steve Gibson