Latino leaders say Prop 39 is all about politics, not election security

Like most issues in the state, California Democrats have framed their fight against Proposition 39, a voter identification measure, as a fight against President Donald Trump. 

Latino leaders have emerged as spokespeople for the No on 39 campaign, calling the idea a squarely political move meant to intimidate Latinos, specifically. The campaign continued on Wednesday with state lawmakers once again speaking out against the potential voter ID proposal, calling it part of the president’s attempt to intimidate voters.

“There is no fraud and abuse, there are no problems with the system,” Sen. Anna Caballero, a Democrat from Merced, said during a virtual press conference Wednesday. “This is a political move by people who don't like how Californians vote, and in particular, how Latinos vote.” 

Prop 39, one of the 14 propositions on California’s ballots this year, would require voters to present a government-issued ID when voting in person. When registering to vote by mail, individuals will be required to submit an ID as well as include the last four digits of either their Social Security number or government ID on their mail-in ballot.

Proponents of the measure, led by Republican Assemblymember Carl DeMaio of San Diego and backed by Trump, say the move is necessary to weed out election fraud and make California's elections more secure.

The state does have several mechanisms in place to ensure every person who casts a ballot is legally eligible to do so. 

Voters are required to present a driver’s license and Social Security number when registering to vote, although they do not have to show that ID when actually voting in person.

Every ballot, whether cast in person or sent by mail, must have a valid signature. Votes are only counted once election officials verify that the signature on a ballot matches the individual’s signature on government records.

Estimates show Prop 39 costing the state between tens of millions and the low hundreds of millions of dollars to implement.

“This again is one more attempt by the president and those that believe in the MAGA movement in wanting to damage the state of California, focused in part on us, the Latino community,” Assemblymember Juan Carrillo, the next chair of the Legislative Latino Caucus, said Wednesday.

Opponents of the measure say since the state already has secure elections, and evidence of voter fraud is extremely rare, the extra hurdle would just keep more voters at home.

“Why would we create more obstacles if we already know that elections are secure, but we know that almost 10 million Californians in 2024 did not vote?” asked Julia Gomez, senior staff attorney at ACLU of Southern California. 

Potential obstacles to voting are also underscored by fears in the Latino community over increased U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ahead of Election Day, with a 45-day operation currently underway in California.

Fears of ICE are prevalent among the entire Latino community, whether they are documented or not. A recent ProPublica investigation found over 500 U.S. citizens have been detained since Trump took office in 2025.

California lawmakers passed bills that will be in effect Nov. 3, banning law enforcement operations from being within 200 feet of a polling place, as well as allowing county election officials to keep polls open longer if voting is disrupted by any prohibited operations.

“It’s one of the things we did in response to what we’re seeing,” Carrillo said.

Caballero and Carrillo both encouraged individuals to vote in person if they can, but if not, assured that voting by mail is secure despite the president’s attempts to restrict the practice.

“The important thing with this election is that we send a mail-in ballot to every person eligible to vote in California,” Caballero said. “You don't need to leave [home], you just need to fill it out, sign it on the back and send it through mail.”