Newsom Signs Law to Protect California Elections from Federal Interference Ahead of Tuesday Primary

Governor Gavin Newsom signed legislation on Wednesday aimed at shielding California's elections from federal interference, citing expectations that the Trump administration might attempt to meddle in this year's midterm elections. The law, effective immediately and enacted just days before next Tuesday's primary, prohibits any individual, including federal agents, from accessing voter rolls or election technology without a court order.

It also restricts law enforcement officers from disrupting election workers, except in cases of public safety emergencies.

While Trump administration officials have stated they have no plans to send immigration agents to polling places across the U.S.—a concern raised by several Democratic secretaries of state—Newsom warned, "We have to be prepared for everything" because "there are no rules anymore with the Trump administration."

Voting is already underway in California's closely watched gubernatorial primary, where a crowded field of Democrats and two viable Republicans are competing for just two spots on the November ballot. Under the state's open primary system, only the top two vote-getters advance to the general election, regardless of party affiliation.

Newsom, who cannot seek a third term, said the law responds to "legitimate anxiety" about Trump's tactics, particularly in Democratic-led states where the president has deployed federal agents over local objections. "I expect the worst with Trump because he has done the worst," Newsom stated at a news conference.

White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson responded later Wednesday, asserting that Trump is committed to ensuring Americans have full confidence in election administration. "Instead of leveling false attacks at the President, Newscum should look in the mirror," she said, using Trump's derogatory nickname for Newsom.

In a 2025 Vanity Fair interview, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles dismissed the idea that Trump would deploy the military to suppress voting, calling it "categorically false."

The California law also makes it a crime to knowingly remove voted ballots from the custody of election officials. This comes after the FBI, under Trump, seized 2020 general election ballots from Georgia's most populous county—a heavily Democratic area central to the president's unfounded claims of fraud.

The FBI and Justice Department have also sought records from previous elections in the largest counties of Arizona and Michigan.

Trump has triggered a national redistricting push ahead of the midterms, urging Republicans in Texas and elsewhere to redraw U.S. House districts to help the party retain control of the closely divided chamber.

Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Florida, and Tennessee have enacted new maps that could benefit Republicans, with Louisiana expected to follow. Republicans estimate they could gain up to 14 seats from redistricting in November, while Democrats believe they could gain six in California and Utah.