Four members of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors announced their opposition Monday to Proposition 39, a November ballot measure that would require voters to provide additional identifying information when casting ballots.
Supervisors Hilda Solis, Holly Mitchell, Lindsey Horvath and Janice Hahn endorsed the No on Prop 39 campaign, arguing the measure would create barriers to voting and increase election costs.
“LA County’s elections are already secure, and Prop 39 does nothing to make them safer,” Mitchell said. “Instead, it creates unnecessary hurdles that would lead to more rejected ballots, longer lines at the polls, and confusion for voters who are simply trying to make their voices heard by exercising their right to vote.”
Proposition 39 would require people voting in person to present government-issued identification. People voting by mail would be required to provide the last four digits of a government-issued identification number on their ballot envelope matching the identification selected in their voter registration, according to the state Legislative Analyst’s Office.
The measure would also require state and local election officials to make “best efforts” using government data to verify the citizenship status of registered voters and would require the state to provide a voter identification card at no cost to voters who request one.
“Prop 39 would hit seniors, students, low-income workers, and people who move frequently the hardest,” Horvath said. “Our democracy works best when every eligible voter can participate. Prop 39 would create new barriers for citizens who already have to overcome them. Vote `NO on Prop 39.”’
The Legislative Analyst’s Office estimates the measure would increase annual state and local government costs by tens of millions of dollars to the low hundreds of millions of dollars, depending on decisions by the Legislature, government agencies, local governments and voters.
“Voting by mail is trusted, accessible, and widely used by Californians, including the majority of Los Angeles County voters,” Hahn said. “Prop 39 attacks that system by putting up new barriers between voters and the ballot box, forcing more people to take additional time off work, slowing ballot counting, and putting valid ballots at risk of rejection.”
About 13 million of the roughly 16 million Californians who voted in the November 2024 presidential election cast vote-by-mail ballots, according to the Legislative Analyst’s Office.
Supporters of Proposition 39 argue the identification requirements would increase confidence in elections while preserving vote-by-mail and other voting options. The measure would require the state to provide a voter identification card at no cost to voters who request one, while the Legislature would determine which forms of government-issued identification could be used.
“Prop 39 is another Trump power grab that would make voting harder, less secure, and more expensive for Californians,” Solis said. “Los Angeles County voters deserve elections that protect their voice, not add new barriers designed to suppress participation and weaken California’s democracy. We’re calling on voters to reject Prop 39.”
Proposition 39 will appear on California’s Nov. 3 ballot.
good for trump i vote yes on prop 39 f the liberals