VICE
Here’s a GOP campaign HQ in California, doubling as a Trump merchandise store, AND allegedly collecting ballots — a state violation — according to this undercover video.
The video was shot in Newport Beach and shows “Trump Store” employees offering to collect a voter’s ballot for storage in their safe. The footage was filed with a complaint made to the Orange County Registrar of Voters.
Vice obtained the video which briefly shows the inside of the store filled with Trump merch, before the lens is covered … but you can clearly hear the conversation about collecting ballots. An employee, or volunteer, says “it’s very safe” to drop off a ballot there.
California Secretary of State Alex Padilla and Attorney General Xavier Becerra fired off a cease-and-desist to the California GOP over its use of ballot boxes. The person who filed the complaint says the video was shot after that cease-and-desist.
The GOP has defended using ballot boxes, claiming they are legal under the state’s ballot collection law.