{"id":3880,"date":"2026-05-28T14:40:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-28T14:40:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/2026\/05\/28\/newsom-signs-law-to-shield-california-elections-from-federal-interference\/"},"modified":"2026-05-28T14:40:00","modified_gmt":"2026-05-28T14:40:00","slug":"newsom-signs-law-to-shield-california-elections-from-federal-interference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/?p=3880","title":{"rendered":"Newsom signs law to shield California elections from federal interference"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"border-color:var(--article-border);background-color:var(--article-inner-background)\" class=\"dcr-wqti5a\">\n<div class=\"dcr-2zxs1v\">\n<div style=\"--grid-area:media\" data-gu-name=\"media\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-14emo0l\">\n<div class=\"dcr-tr9ye5\">\n<figure id=\"d8b8a992-1563-4519-8980-f69157b29fc3\" class=\"dcr-142siv7\">\n<div id=\"img-1\" class=\"dcr-1t8m8f2\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"people stand at voting booths\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/2ffad5f90d780fd2f6c22e11234f6e062b3bcdb1\/0_0_6500_4335\/master\/6500.jpg?width=465&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"465\" height=\"310.1192307692308\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"dcr-evn1e9\"><span class=\"dcr-v822l1\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-gup2gr\">\n<div class=\"dcr-fntg6k\"><label for=\"the-checkbox\" class=\"dcr-1xgwz8b\"><\/label> <\/p>\n<div id=\"the-caption\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1os51wo\"><span class=\"dcr-hvsf4t\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1qvd3m6\">Voters embrace during California&#8217;s special election on Proposition 50 at the Metro Headquarters polling station in Los Angeles, California, on 4 November 2025.<\/span> Photograph: Daniel Cole\/Reuters<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><a href=\"#img-1\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-13fd1ms\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"d8b8a992-1563-4519-8980-f69157b29fc3\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-4tmywn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-194i6pr\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"dcr-n4pnam\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1hdkqum\"><span class=\"dcr-hvsf4t\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1qvd3m6\">Voters embrace during California&#8217;s special election on Proposition 50 at the Metro Headquarters polling station in Los Angeles, California, on 4 November 2025.<\/span> Photograph: Daniel Cole\/Reuters<\/figcaption><\/span><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:border\" data-gu-name=\"border\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:headline\" data-gu-name=\"headline\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-14emo0l\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1aqe7zu\">\n<h1 class=\"dcr-1k1a1x\">Newsom signs law to shield California elections from federal interference<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:standfirst\" data-gu-name=\"standfirst\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-15in7js\">\n<p>Governor says law is a response to \u2018legitimate anxiety\u2019 about Trump\u2019s tactics targeting Democratic-led cities and states<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:body\" data-gu-name=\"body\" class=\"dcr-kn9unn\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1a4fred\">\n<div id=\"maincontent\" class=\"dcr-ydnaza\">\n<div class=\"article-body-commercial-selector article-body-viewer-selector dcr-1c9t5u6\">\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Gavin Newsom, California\u2019s governor, signed legislation Wednesday that aims to shield California elections from federal interference, saying he expected Donald Trump\u2019s administration to try to meddle in the midterms this year.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">The law, which took effect immediately and came days before next Tuesday\u2019s primary, prohibits any person \u2013 including federal agents \u2013 from accessing voter rolls or election technology without a court order. Law enforcement officers are restricted from disrupting election workers, except in public safety emergencies.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Trump administration officials so far have said they have no plans to send immigration agents to polling locations across the US, a concern raised this year by several Democratic secretaries of state. But Newsom warned \u201cwe have to be prepared for everything\u201d because \u201cthere\u2019s no rules any more with the Trump administration\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Voting is already under way in California\u2019s closely watched primary for governor, where a crowded field of Democrats and two viable Republicans are vying for just two spots on the November ballot. Under the state\u2019s open primary system, only the top two vote-getters advance to the general election, regardless of party affiliation.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Newsom, who cannot seek a third term, said the election law is a response to \u201clegitimate anxiety\u201d about Trump\u2019s tactics, primarily in Democratic-led states, where the president has deployed federal agents over the objections of local leaders. The Democratic governor warned against underestimating someone who \u201cdoesn\u2019t believe in free and fair elections\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">\u201cI expect the worst with Trump because he\u2019s done the worst,\u201d he said at a news conference.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson told the Associated Press later Wednesday that Trump is committed to ensuring that Americans have full confidence in the administration of elections.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">\u201cInstead of levying false attacks at the President, Newscum should look in the mirror,\u201d she said in a statement, using Trump\u2019s derogatory nickname for Newsom.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">In an interview last year with Vanity Fair, Susie Wiles, the White House chief of staff, knocked down the idea that Trump would deploy the military to suppress voting, saying it was \u201ccategorically false\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">The California law also makes it a crime to knowingly take voted ballots out of the custody of election officials.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Earlier this year, the FBI under Trump seized the 2020 general election ballots from Georgia\u2019s most populous county, which is heavily Democratic and has long been at the center of the president\u2019s false claims that fraud cost him the race. The FBI and justice department also have sought records from previous elections in the largest counties in Arizona and Michigan.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Trump triggered a national redistricting frenzy ahead of the midterms when he urged Republicans in Texas and elsewhere to redraw their US House districts to help the party retain control of the closely divided chamber. Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Florida and Tennessee also have enacted new maps that could benefit Republicans, and Louisiana is expected to be next.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Republicans so far think they could gain as many as 14 seats from redistricting in November, while Democrats think they could gain six in California and Utah.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" class=\"dcr-qxqnsy\"><span class=\"dcr-1rq3vad\">Explore more on these topics<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-1dzx48f\">\n<ul class=\"dcr-1rrvs2w\">\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/california\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">California<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/gavin-newsom\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Gavin Newsom<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/west-coast\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">West Coast<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/us-politics\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">US politics<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/donaldtrump\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Donald Trump<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/trump-administration\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Trump administration<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/us-midterm-elections-2026\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">US midterm elections 2026<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/tone\/news\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">news<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-nu129i\"><a href=\"mailto:?subject=Newsom%20signs%20law%20to%20shield%20California%20elections%20from%20federal%20interference&amp;body=https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/may\/28\/california-law-shield-elections-federal-interference?CMP=share_btn_url\" class=\"dcr-125qj9d\">Share<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-zhx6xs\"><a data-link-name=\"meta-syndication-article\" href=\"https:\/\/syndication.theguardian.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fus-news%2F2026%2Fmay%2F28%2Fcalifornia-law-shield-elections-federal-interference&amp;type=article&amp;internalpagecode=us-news\/2026\/may\/28\/california-law-shield-elections-federal-interference\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\" title=\"Reuse this content\" class=\"dcr-14rjinq\">Reuse this content<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:right-column\" data-gu-name=\"right-column\" class=\"dcr-1h2hraq\">\n<div class=\"dcr-tn16h9\">\n<section class=\"dcr-1hko8ef\"><\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Voters embrace during California&#8217;s special election on Proposition 50 at the Metro Headquarters polling station in Los Angeles,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":3882,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3880","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3880","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3880"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3880\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3882"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3880"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3880"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3880"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}