California Vows to Overturn Local Voter-Approved ID Requirement
30th May 2025
California officials are taking another shot at undoing a voter-approved measure in the city of Huntington Beach that requires ID to vote.
California Secretary of State Shirley Weber and Attorney General Rob Bonta filed an appeal in the California 4th District Court of Appeals after an Orange County Superior Court backed Huntington Beach’s authority to require voter ID.
Local governments enacting their own election laws in California isn’t unheard of. The cities of Oakland and San Francisco allow noncitizens to vote in school board elections. However, in August 2024, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 1174, which bars local election officials from requiring photo identification for elections.
Earlier this year, a group of Republican state legislators initiated the process for a ballot referendum to get voter ID statewide.