Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco last week released a video (see below) to clarify that his deputies “have not, are not, and will not engage in any type of immigration enforcement” and that he is working “to reform an extremely dangerous sanctuary state law forced upon us by reckless politicians that forces federal immigration officials from ICE into our communities to find these criminals rather than removing them from the safety of our county jails.”
According to the Orange County Register, Bianco is expected to announce on Monday, February 17, that he is running for Governor of California in 2026.
Bianco, who endorsed and campaigned for President Trump in 2024, was making the rounds at the Sacramento Capitol on Tuesday. As seen below, he “made a courtesy visit” to newly elected State Senator Steven Choi (District 37, Orange County).
With the photo below, Choi reported: “We discussed variety of public safety issues including implementation of the Prop. 36.”
Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco made a courtesy visit to my Sacramento Capitol office today. Tuesday, Feb 11th. We discussed variety of public safety issues including implementation of the Prop. 36. pic.twitter.com/DAxLQGjVhY
— Steven Choi (@ChoiForSenate) February 12, 2025
Prop 36, which “allows felony charges and increases sentences for certain drug and theft crimes,” went in effect in December 2024. Many Democrats including California Governor Gavin Newsom opposed Prop 36. (Note: Newsom cannot run for reelection in 2026 due to term limits.)
Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC) warns: “Prop 36 will make more immigrants deportable and ineligible for lawful status, even if they have lived in the U.S. for decades” and “will increase ICE arrests, meaning that more vulnerable immigrants will be funneled into the detention and deportation system.”
Prison Policy Initiative, which also opposed Prop 36, said the measure will “cut millions of dollars from reentry and prevention services” and “could increase the state prison population by 35% by 2029.”
Note: The office of California Secretary of State Dr. Shirley Weber reported: “Major financial backers of Proposition 36 include Walmart ($2.5 million), Home Depot ($1 million), Target ($1 million), In-N-Out Burger ($500,000), the California Correctional Peace Officers Association ($300,000) and Macy’s ($215,000).”
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