SACRAMENTO, California — Local governments in California will be barred from establishing local laws that require residents present identification to vote in elections under a new law signed Sunday by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
The legislation — from state Sen. Dave Min, an Orange County Democrat running for Rep. Katie Porter ’s open House seat — is a direct response to a controversial ballot measure approved this year by voters in Huntington Beach requiring people to show photo identification at the polls. It will take effect on Jan. 1.
California is one of 14 states that does not require voter ID at the polls, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures .
The Republican-led city, whose leaders often tussle with Sacramento Democrats, has maintained that its status as a charter city gives it home rule over elections administration.
But Attorney General Rob Bonta and Secretary of State Shirley Weber aren’t buying it: The officials sued Huntington Beach in April to invalidate the law, arguing it interferes with state voting rights protections.