A California judge rejected the state’s attempts to shut down a conservative coastal city’s voter ID law on April 7, ruling that the city did not violate state elections law when voters passed the provision last year.
In his ruling early on April 7, Orange County Superior Court Judge Nico Dourbetas denied a request by California Attorney General Rob Bonta to invalidate Huntington Beach’s charter amendment, which was passed in March 2024.
“There is no showing that a voter identification requirement compromises the integrity of a municipal election,” Dourbetas wrote in his decision on April 7. “Municipal election results do not lack integrity because only residents of a municipality who are eligible to vote participated in the election.”
The judge also found that the city’s charter amendment does not violate the right to vote and does not reduce the integrity of the electoral process.
Huntington Beach City Attorney Michael Gates celebrated the ruling.
“Congratulations to the City of Huntington Beach on today’s court victory upholding the City’s Voter ID law,” Gates posted on X. “We won before in 2024, and the city just won again!!! This Court ruling means the City beat the State of California ... Again!! Fights produce wins. Keep fighting!”
Bonta filed the lawsuit on behalf of Secretary of State Shirley Weber in April 2024, alleging that the voter ID law violated state election law. The original lawsuit was thrown out in November by Dourbetas, who ruled that the state did not provide sufficient evidence.
The state appealed in January. The state’s Fourth Appellate District reversed the judge’s decision, saying that the court’s “conclusion that this matter is not ripe for decision is problematic.”
The ruling sent the matter back to the judge.
Bonta and Weber also filed for a writ of mandate in February, asking the court to resolve the lawsuit on its merits instead of waiting for the appeal ruling, which was the case decided on April 7.
Bonta and Weber also plan to appeal the latest ruling.
“Yet again, we believe the Orange County Superior Court got it wrong,” Bonta said in a statement. “Earlier this year, the California Fourth District Court of Appeal wrote that Huntington Beach’s argument that ‘it had a constitutional right to regulate its own municipal elections free from state interference ... is ... problematic.’ We agree,” Bonta said.
“We remain confident that [the voter ID law] will ultimately be struck down.”
California Attorney General Rob Bonta attends a press conference in Los Angeles on April 15, 2024. Bonta and Secretary of State Shirley Weber plan to appeal the April 7, 2025, ruling. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times
Weber alleged that the city’s law will exclude voters.
“The court’s order is in direct conflict with California election laws and will result in disenfranchising California voters,” she said in a statement. “As California’s chief elections officer, I will continue to advocate for this state and its eligible voters by partnering with Attorney General Bonta to appeal this decision.”
The local voter ID law is one of many that have cropped up across the United States in recent years. Most recently, a referendum was approved in Wisconsin on April 1 to add a voter ID requirement to the state’s constitution, solidifying a rule in place since 2011.
Thirty-six other states have laws requesting or requiring voters to show some form of identification at the polls, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Bills to clarify that only U.S. citizens may vote are pending in 12 states this year, the organization also reported.
President Donald Trump also signed an executive order on March 25 to overhaul election rules on voter registration requirements, election law enforcement, electronic voting system security, voting deadlines, and foreign interference in elections.
Jill McLaughlin
Author
Jill McLaughlin is an award-winning journalist covering politics, environment, and statewide issues. She has been a reporter and editor for newspapers in Oregon, Nevada, and New Mexico. Jill was born in Yosemite National Park and enjoys the majestic outdoors, traveling, golfing, and hiking.
