Forgotten Ballots from November Election Will Be Counted After Court Order

Press release from the Humboldt County Elections Office:

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The Humboldt County Office of Elections would like to share that the ballots discovered earlier this month inside a locked drop box from the November 4, 2025 Statewide Special Election will be counted.

Background

On May 4, Humboldt County Office of Elections staff discovered 596 uncounted sealed ballots from the November 4, 2025 Statewide Special Election inside a locked ballot drop box. Under Section 2.5 of Article II of the California Constitution, these ballots should have been counted before election was certified on Dec. 5, 2025.

Following the discovery, elections staff worked to ensure proper protocol was followed. It was confirmed the ballots had not been tampered with, as the drop box was locked and the ballots remained sealed. The Office of Elections then worked with the California Secretary of State to determine the appropriate process to have the ballots counted.

It was determined that the error occurred due to a miscommunication among election workers about whether the drop box had been fully emptied. To prevent this from happening again, the Office of Elections has implemented a new physical verification procedure requiring each drop box to be confirmed empty and secured before election results are finalized.

While the Office of Elections and the state both confirmed that counting these ballots will not change the result of the November 4, 2025 Statewide Special Election, it was important for the county to explore every available option to have the votes counted.

Under Elections Code §17302, ballots from the November 4, 2025 Statewide Special Election must be destroyed six months after the election was certified. However, the County of Humboldt secured the uncounted ballots and filed a petition with the Humboldt County Superior Court requesting to count the ballots and recertify the election. The court made the determination to grant the county’s petition.

“I am grateful to the court for granting our petition to count these votes so that every eligible ballot will be reflected in the final election results,” said Humboldt County Clerk-Recorder & Registrar of Voters Juan Pablo Cervantes. “While we are relieved by this outcome, I want to be very clear that my entire team takes the circumstances that led to this situation with the utmost seriousness. I am deeply sorry this error occurred. We have strengthened our procedures, implemented additional safeguards, and remain committed to maintaining the integrity, transparency and accountability our community expects and deserves.”

The court order authorizes the Humboldt County Clerk-Recorder & Registrar of Voters to open and count the ballots and include the results in the final vote totals for the November 4, 2025 Statewide Special Election. A supplemental certification must be issued by July 31 and will be backdated to the original certification date of Dec. 3, 2025.The ballots must also be destroyed by July 31.

About Humboldt County Elections Office

The Humboldt County Office of Elections is committed to ensuring all eligible residents have an opportunity to exercise their right to vote, conducting elections in a fair, accurate and efficient manner, providing reliable information and the best possible service to voters, districts, candidates and other interested parties. For more information, visit HumboldtGov.org/Elections.

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