Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, a Republican candidate for California governor, has opened an investigation into vote totals from the state’s November 2025 special election on Proposition 50, citing concerns raised by a third-party group about discrepancies in reported ballots.

The investigation follows claims by the Riverside Election Integrity Team, which alleged it identified approximately 45,000 excess votes connected to the election.

State and county election officials have rejected those findings, but Bianco announced his office would conduct its own review, including a physical recount of ballots.

"This investigation is simple: Physically count the ballots and compare that result with the total votes recorded," Bianco said during a press conference Friday.

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Proposition 50 was a ballot measure focused on reforming California’s congressional districts. The proposal was designed to favor Democrats, following similar redistricting efforts in other states.

The move by Bianco has drawn criticism from state officials, including California Secretary of State Shirley Weber, who questioned the sheriff’s authority to conduct such an investigation.

"The Riverside County Sheriff's Office has taken actions based on allegations that lack credible evidence and risk undermining public confidence in our elections," Weber told City News Service.

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"The sheriff's assertion that his deputies know how to count is admirable. The fact remains that he and his deputies are not elections officials, and they do not have expertise in election administration."

Riverside County Registrar of Voters Art Tinoco has also dismissed the concerns raised by the Riverside Election Integrity Team.

Earlier this month, Tinoco told county supervisors that the group’s conclusions were based on a misunderstanding of how vote totals are initially recorded.

According to Tinoco, early intake logs created by polling workers are intended as estimates rather than precise counts. He said the final vote total differed by just 0.16%, or 103 votes, from those initial figures.

Despite those explanations, the Riverside Election Integrity Team has maintained that its calculations are accurate.

The disagreement over those figures led to Bianco’s decision to initiate a formal investigation through his office.

The investigation has also prompted a response from California Attorney General Bob Bonta, who stated that his office sought additional information regarding the probe.

"We have attempted to work cooperatively with the Sheriff’s Office in order to better understand the basis for their investigation, including by reviewing the warrants themselves and by requesting the Sheriff’s complete investigative file," Bonta’s office said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital on Sunday.

"We made these requests pursuant to the Attorney General’s supervisory authority over county sheriffs."

Bonta’s office further stated that it had encountered difficulties obtaining documentation related to the investigation.

"During this time, the Sheriff has delayed, stonewalled, and otherwise refused to work with us in good faith. To date, the Sheriff has failed to provide most of the requested documentation. But, what we have been able to learn raises serious questions about the merits of this investigation. We are especially concerned with legal deficiencies in the affidavits underlying the warrants, including the omission of material facts," the statement continued.

Bianco has disputed the state’s involvement and said his office had received multiple letters from the attorney general instructing him to halt the investigation, according to the Desert Sun.

He also addressed criticism from state officials and others regarding the probe.

"The outrage that an investigation was happening was extremely concerning to me, especially coming from someone who claims to be a law enforcement officer that is, I’ve said this a minimum of a thousand times, he’s an embarrassment to law enforcement," Bianco said.

The issue has also drawn attention in the context of California’s gubernatorial race.

Bianco is among the candidates seeking the Republican nomination and has been active in political discussions related to election procedures and oversight.

The dispute over the investigation reflects broader disagreements between state officials and local law enforcement regarding election administration and authority.

While election officials have defended the accuracy of the vote count, Bianco has indicated that his office will proceed with its review.

No timeline has been announced for the completion of the investigation, and officials have not indicated whether the findings could result in further legal or administrative action.

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