President Donald Trump tweeted Wednesday (October 14) his support for Republicans who installed unofficial ballot drop boxes in California as the November election nears. “Fight hard Republicans,” Trump posted. “They have been taking advantage of the system for years!” Earlier this week, California Secretary of State Alex Padilla (D) and Attorney General Xavier Becerra (D) sent cease-and-desist notices to state GOP offices to remove over 50 unauthorized drop boxes by Thursday (October 15) or face potential legal action.
The officials claim the boxes placed in Los Angeles, Orange and Fresno Counties are incorrectly labelled as "official" among other violations. Hector Barajas, a spokesman for the California Republican Party, claimed the ballot boxes "were legal because state law permits organizations, volunteers and campaign workers to gather finished ballots and drop them off at polling places or election offices," according to The Hill.
"These unauthorized drop boxes are a disservice to state and local election administrators who have spent months working on the placement and deployment of official ballot drop boxes," Padilla said Monday (October 12). He added that only county election officials have the authority to place ballot boxes.
Trump tweeted Tuesday night (October 13) about the ongoing ballot box battle between Republicans and Democrats in the Golden State. "You mean only Democrats are allowed to do this? But haven’t the Dems been doing this for years? See you in court. Fight hard Republicans!" the president wrote.
"The last person who should be providing legal advice is the guy who has lost to California in court over and over," Becerra tweeted back, adding that those handling ballots should "obey the law -- not politicians." Padilla said that California law "is clear." "It is illegal to establish unofficial drop boxes and to misinform voters about how to vote by mail. The President should not advocate breaking our state laws," the Secretary of State added.
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