A Sacramento Superior Court judge on Thursday upheld radical Democrat Attorney General Rob Bonta’s last-minute, heavily slanted ballot title and summary for Proposition 39, California’s common-sense voter ID initiative, locking in language that frames the measure as one that “PROHIBITS CITIZENS FROM VOTING UNLESS THEY PRESENT GOVERNMENT-ISSUED IDENTIFICATION.”
Judge Jennifer K. Rockwell denied the petition for writ of mandate filed by Californians for Voter ID, Yes on 39, and registered voter Donald DiCostanzo.
The court ruled that Bonta’s materials “accurately describe the effect of the measure” and fell within the “considerable latitude” the Attorney General enjoys under California election law.
The bold, capitalized lead language that will confront voters on the November 3, 2026, ballot is exactly what Yes on 39 supporters called false and designed to prejudice the electorate against the popular reform.
Proposition 39 would amend the state Constitution to require government-issued identification for in-person voting and the last four digits of a designated government-issued ID number on mail ballot envelopes.
It also directs election officials to maintain accurate voter rolls, use best efforts to verify citizenship, and report annually on citizenship verification rates.
The state would provide free voter ID cards on request. Election officials would only count ballots after verifying identity and that the person has cast only one ballot.
Supporters argued the “prohibits citizens from voting” framing is inaccurate and inflammatory. They contended the measure is a verification rule that regulates which ballots are counted, not a ban on casting a ballot, and that Bonta buried or minimized the citizenship verification and accurate rolls provisions. They noted the original circulating title and summary issued in 2025 was far more neutral: “Establishes Additional Voter Identification and Citizenship Verification Requirements.”
Bonta changed the language after the initiative qualified with more than 1.3 million signatures. The new version leads with the prohibitive framing and emphasizes invalidating non-compliant mail ballots and prohibiting in-person voting without ID.
Judge Rockwell rejected the challenge. She found that the measure’s text does require presentation of ID when casting a ballot in person and provision of identifying information when voting by mail.
The court accepted that “voting” includes having one’s ballot counted, citing case law that the right to vote encompasses the right to have the vote counted without dilution.
The judge also deferred to Bonta’s discretion in deciding which provisions constitute the “chief purposes” of the measure, noting that some of the citizenship verification and roll maintenance language tracks existing law and that the annual reporting requirement is the primary new element highlighted.
The ruling comes amid fierce Democratic opposition to Prop 39. California Democrats, including figures like Xavier Becerra, have framed the measure as “Donald Trump’s election rigging” and launched opposition efforts. Polling has shown majority support for voter ID requirements even in deep-blue California.
This is classic California Democrat election engineering: change the ballot language after signatures are gathered, use charged wording that paints a popular integrity measure as an attack on “citizens,” then have a friendly court rubber-stamp it under the “considerable latitude” doctrine that gives the partisan AG wide berth.
Voters will still decide on November 3. Proposition 39 remains a straightforward effort to bring California closer to the practices of the large majority of other states that require identification and to strengthen citizenship verification and roll maintenance. The state has long lagged on election integrity safeguards.
You can read the ruling here.
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