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Newsom signs laws aimed at preventing election interference California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) on Saturday signed a legislation package aimed at safeguarding the state’s election process against potential interference in the upcoming midterm elections. The Democratic governor, who has repeatedly warned President Trump’s administration would attempt to meddle in these upcoming elections, signed 13 bills in Los Angeles. “Donald Trump won’t stop until he can exert dictatorial control over your free vote and disenfranchise millions of people this November,” Newsom said in a statement. “California will stop him at every opportunity. “We have no bigger task than fighting to protect the right to vote from interference and meddling – the future of democracy is on the line,” he continued. “These bills today build upon the wall California has built to safeguard our electoral process.” This legislation package includes measures to prohibit the seizure of ballots or election records before results have been certified and imposes a felony penalty on authority figures who direct their employees to interfere in the delivery of a mail-in ballot. Another measure requires election officials to notify California’s secretary of state and attorney general after becoming aware of an effort to obtain election records or technology. This follows Newsom’s signing of a law in May that prohibits federal agents from accessing voter rolls or election technology without a court order. State Attorney General Rob Bonta (D) commended the new legislation package in a Saturday statement and noted the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision to side with California and other blue states to block the Trump administration from imposing its proposed changes to mail-in ballot voting. “But we cannot, and will not, let our guard down,” Bonta said. “I have sponsored and supported multiple pieces of legislation to protect our democracy, and I’m grateful that Governor Newsom and the Legislature have now acted to further safeguard the right to vote.” Democrats have expressed concern that the Trump administration would attempt to interfere in the November elections, in which the Republican Party is fighting to maintain its majority in Congress. Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
document fetched 2026-09-20 02:46 · canonical https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/6100050-newsom-signs-election-protection-bills