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Some local candidates and all five members of the county Board of Supervisors agree that their constituents deserve more clarity about how local elections work—especially with June’s primary just around the corner.
“This is not an ordinary election year. We have a president that’s threatening to nationalize elections,” 2nd District Supervisor Laura Capps told the Sun. “We have seniors who have voted by mail for a long time and now can’t trust that their vote will be counted, … and even just the presence of confusion can lead to suppressed turnout. And that’s not OK.”
In late April, Capps and 1st District Supervisor Roy Lee co-introduced an item that directed the county’s Elections Division to elaborate on specific protocols it will take to prevent voter intimidation during the June and November election cycles.
Passed with a 5-0 vote, the directive also advised the department to address how it will handle any attempted use of county polling locations for immigration enforcement operations or other activities that could interfere with voter access.
“Only U.S. citizens can vote, but that doesn’t mean U.S. citizens aren’t still afraid these days. … Our federal immigration enforcement isn’t confined to just those who don’t have proper documentation,” Capps said. “It’s not as though this is just an issue right now where only those who are undocumented are fearful. This is way beyond the pale, and we’ve seen that. We saw in Minneapolis. … The situation has become purely chaotic.”
On May 5, the Elections Division fulfilled the board’s request. The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department was also available throughout the hearing to answer questions from the board.
“I was reassured when [Sheriff Bill Brown] acknowledged that even the mere presence of federal agents is intimidation, and that is against the law,” Capps said in an interview after the meeting. “I understand that the community, particularly the immigrant community, may not feel satisfied by the fact that it would be our law enforcement that would be enforcing that, but there’s no other way around it.”
Capps was referring to a section of the Elections Division’s presentation that emphasized that “we cannot intercede with any law enforcement activity,” as summarized in the staff report.
After adding that the department is not a law enforcement agency itself, the Elections Division clarified that poll workers and other officials follow procedures “for contacting law enforcement when any violation of election law occurs.”
“Each election officer is required to participate in a training program that encompasses ballot issuance, voter registration, de-escalation techniques, as well as how to identify, resolve, and report any unusual or concerning issues,” the staff report continued. “In addition, election officers are trained in how to identify voter intimidation … a serious offense.”
While Supervisor Capps will be on June’s ballot as part of her reelection run for the 2nd District seat, candidates in the race for 5th District Supervisor include Maribel Aguilera, who described voter intimidation as “completely and unequivocally unacceptable.”
“As a candidate, … and as someone who has spent the last 20 years advocating and representing this community as an attorney and [Santa Maria] council member, I take this seriously,” Aguilera told the Sun via email. “Every eligible voter in this county has the right to vote without fear. We must ensure that voters feel safe at or near a polling place. This is not a partisan position. It is what California law requires, and it is what our community deserves.”
Fellow 5th District candidate Cory Bantilan said he appreciated that the May 5 board discussion “shed more light on the election process, which is always helpful.”
“I am confident that we will hold free and fair elections in Santa Barbara County,” he said in an emailed statement to the Sun.
Also in the 5th District race, Ricardo Valencia said that while he appreciated some elements of the Election Division’s presentation, he did not think the discussion fully addressed “the fear and uncertainty many families in our community are experiencing right now, … fear connected to federal rhetoric or immigration enforcement concerns.”
The Sun reached out to Capps’ opponent for the 2nd District seat, Elijah Mack, for comment on the topic. Although Mack expressed initial interest in an interview, he did not respond to the Sun’s questions before press time.
Melinda Greene, a candidate vying to be Santa Barbara County’s next clerk-recorder-assessor, told the Sun via email that she was happy to see the Board of Supervisors “take an active stance regarding voter outreach.”
She was referring to the county’s newly initiated social media and “know your rights” flyer campaign to increase public engagement and awareness.
“I think the possibility is very low for ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] to show up, but the fear is real and must be addressed,” said Greene, who’s currently the deputy clerk-recorder-assessor. “The more the public learns about our preparedness, the more we can ease concerns.”
The county’s five supervisors have all endorsed Greene’s run to be the next clerk-recorder-assessor, a position currently held by Joe Holland, who’s running for reelection.
Increasing awareness about Santa Barbara County’s voting and poll worker protocols via social media is among the changes to the Elections Division that Capps said she believes are crucial prior to June’s primary election.
While touring the county’s Elections Division facilities is one way to understand what local poll workers deal with, Capps said social media is a quick way to get information to the public.
“I’ve toured it and members of the public can tour it, you can see the voting machines, … but not everybody has the ability to do that, to know that their vote is safe,” Capps told the Sun. “There are airtight systems in place, … voter protections in place that people need to hear about.
“We need to be bringing that information to people in ways that are easier to understand and digest.”
Reach Senior Staff Writer Caleb Wiseblood at cwiseblood@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in May 14 – May 21, 2026.