San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus appears on way to losing her job following early returns in special election
The first batch of votes in Tuesday's special election to oust embattled San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus has been released, and she appears destined to lose her job.
Preliminary results released just after 8 p.m. show that 85.6% of ballots counted support giving the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors the power to fire the sheriff. A majority, or more than 50%, is required for the amendment to be passed.
Voters in San Mateo County headed to the polls or mailed in their ballots to decide on Measure A, a charter amendment that would grant the Board of Supervisors temporary authority to remove the Sheriff.
These results include ballots dropped off at voting centers by Monday and mail-in ballots received by Monday.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the County Registration and Elections Division had received 91,112 mail-in ballots, and 1,216 ballots had been cast at voting centers.
The Board of Supervisors resorted to holding a special election after Corpus refused to step down amid scathing allegations about her tenure in office. In November, a 400-page independent investigation into her administration was released, containing findings of abuse of power, retaliation, and intimidation.
"The people of this county deserve a sheriff that they can trust, just like the employees of the Sheriff's Office deserve a sheriff that they can trust," said Eliot Storch, secretary of the San Mateo County Deputy Sheriff's Association, during a press conference immediately following the release of the election's preliminary results Tuesday night.
The DSA is one of the unions that have been outspoken against Corpus.
"They deserve someone who is not going to be committing these abuses, who is not going to be corrupt, and who's not going to be causing all these problems, so much to the point that we had to have a special election just because of it," Storch said.
Calls for Corpus to resign came swiftly following the release of the report, but she has been steadfast in her promise to stay put.
She has said the attacks on her are politically motivated because she is a female sheriff up against a group of officers who are part of a "good ol' boys club."
The Board of Supervisors currently does not have the authority to remove the sheriff or any other elected official, so they moved to put it on the ballot and bring it to the voters.
After discussing their options, the supervisors decided that getting Measure A passed would be the quickest way to remove Corpus. A recall election would cost more money and take longer, they concluded.
Opponents of Measure A, including Corpus, have mainly raised concerns that allowing the board to remove an elected official could infringe upon the democratic process.
"The special Measure A election is not about public safety -- it is a blatant attempt by entrenched political forces within the Sheriff's Office to undo change and silence your voices," Corpus said in a statement from February. "This is an attack on democracy, accountability, and the future of law enforcement in San Mateo County."
However, Storch believes that voting for or against Measure A gives San Mateo County voters the chance to have a say in whether Corpus goes or stays.
"They voted in this election. Their vote was heard," Storch said. "Given how focused it was on Sheriff Corpus and her actions, we believe that this was essentially an expedited recall. If anyone wanted to make their voice heard, they had every opportunity to vote."
Outside the DSA headquarters in Redwood City, celebrations were underway as results were announced. Screams of cheer erupted as they saw that Measure A seemed to pass overwhelmingly.
Storch spoke on behalf of the DSA to reporters as the initial batch of voter results came in.
"We are extremely excited with this result so far," Storch said. "Obviously, the results are not yet official, not every ball has been counted yet. But what we've seen so far from those first results was incredible, and it really showed that we have the support of the community."
Corpus did not respond to a request for comment by publication time.
Post-Election Day results containing ballots received after Election Day and more ballots cast in-person will be released starting Thursday.
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