An Orange County judge has sustained the city of Huntington Beach’s objection to a legal action brought by the California Attorney General’s Office that sought to overturn the city’s new voter identification requirements.
Orange County Superior Court Judge Nico Dourbetas handed down the decision on Nov. 15, finding that the state’s challenge to the municipal measure was premature, that the city charter is “permissive and discretionary in character” and that the voter-passed Measure 1 did not conflict with state elections law.
Dourbetas gave the petitioners, Attorney General Rob Bonta and Secretary of State Shirley Weber, 20 days to file an amended petition.
Huntington Beach’s city attorney, Michael Gates, said he was pleased by the judge’s decision and said California cities should be allowed to consider voter ID measures to strengthen election integrity.
“The court said that it did not see a conflict (at least yet) between the city’s voter ID law and state law,” Gates told the Southern California Record in an email. “This is the beginning of a long battle I predict, but one thing is for sure, the people want voter ID, the city’s voter ID law is perfectly legal, and most importantly, we are going to continue this fight against Sacramento here in Huntington Beach. We will not stand down.”
City voters passed Measure 1 in March of this year by a margin of 53.4% to 46.6%, according to the Ballotpedia website. Opponents of the measure, including the ACLU of Southern California, had argued that the measure’s provisions for voter ID and drop box monitoring would result in voter suppression and that the measure was unnecessary.
Measure 1 also contained language stating that, if a conflict came up between the city charter and California Election Code, the charter would prevail. The measure is set to take effect for all municipal elections beginning in 2026.
Bonta and Weber filed the lawsuit challenging Measure 1 on April 15, arguing that local ordinances cannot conflict with a state law if they deal with a “statewide concern.” The integrity of California elections and the need to protect the constitutional rights of voters represent such concerns, according to the lawsuit.
“Under both existing law and Senate Bill 1174, all local governments – including charter cities like Huntington Beach – are prohibited from disenfranchising voters at the polls by implementing voter ID requirements,” Bonta said in a prepared statement. “Let me be clear: That has not changed. We disagree with the court’s decision that it is too early to bring our lawsuit and remain confident in the strength of our case.”
SB 1174, authored by state Sen. David Min (D-Irvine), was passed by the Legislature after the litigation against Huntington Beach’s voter ID regulations was filed. Signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom on Sept. 29, the bill prohibits local governments from enforcing charter provisions requiring citizens to present identification in order to vote.
The Attorney General’s Office argues that SB 1174 “reinforces” existing state restrictions on local governments putting in place voter ID requirements.
Huntington Beach is a solidly Republican city, with current voter registration data showing that 56.5% of city voters align themselves with the GOP and 41.9% are registered Democrats.