Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco criticized California Attorney General Rob Bonta after the state filed an emergency writ seeking to halt the counting of ballots tied to a local investigation into the November 2025 special election.

Bianco, who is running for governor, said the move comes as his office investigates what he described as a discrepancy between the number of ballots cast and the number of votes reported in Riverside County.

“Hello California Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and your next governor. Well, well, well, the political corruption in California just gets bigger and bigger. Our embarrassment to law enforcement. Attorney General Rob Bonta just filed an emergency writ with the court of appeals to stop ballots from being counted in Riverside County,” Bianco said.

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According to Bianco, the investigation centers on an alleged difference of approximately 45,000 votes.

“For those not aware, we are conducting an investigation into an alleged and potential 45,000 extra votes counted than the number of ballots cast in the November 2025 special election,” he said.

Bianco said the review is focused solely on reconciling totals, not analyzing how votes were cast.

“So we are all clear, this isn’t about counting yes and no votes. This is simply counting the total ballots and comparing that total with the number of votes reported by the Dominion machines, plain and simple common sense,” he said.

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He also noted that a superior court judge had authorized the process.

“Not only did a superior court judge approve a warrant to obtain the ballots, but also issued a separate order to count them,” Bianco said.

Bianco questioned the attorney general’s decision to intervene and suggested the move could be intended to prevent findings from becoming public.

“Why in the world would rob Bonta want that count stopped, unless he was afraid of what that count would uncover,” he said.

He further raised concerns about how the case could be handled by the appellate court.

“We have an extremely politically biased appeals court, so this is going to be interesting,” Bianco said.

Bianco framed the dispute as a broader issue of transparency and public trust in elections, saying voters should be paying close attention to how the situation unfolds.

“What’s it going to be let law enforcement count the ballots as part of a lawful investigation, or halt the investigation and sweep it under the rug,” he said.

He concluded by calling on Californians to demand openness in the process.

“All California voters should be demanding transparency, not legal maneuvers and cover ups. Stay tuned,” Bianco said.

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