# Shasta County Election Official Clint Curtis Sparks Backlash Over Plan to Hire Convicted Registrar Tina Peters

> Shasta County Registrar Clint Curtis plans to appoint Tina Peters, who was convicted in 2024 over election equipment tampering, as his deputy registrar. The announcement has drawn sharp criticism from California lawmakers and local county supervisors.

**Type:** article · **Category:** America · **Published:** 2026-08-20 · **Source:** TrendKia
**Canonical:** https://trendkia.com/en/america/shasta-county-men-chunava-adhikari-clint-curtis-ka-vivadita-phaisala-sajayaphta-tina-peters-ko-laenge-dipti-ke-pada-para-19009 · **Language:** English
**Tags:** Clint Curtis, Tina Peters, Shasta County, 2020 Election, Donald Trump, US Politics, California, Election Interference

A fresh wave of political and legal controversy has engulfed election administration in Shasta County, California. Clint Curtis, the county's Registrar of Voters, has announced plans to appoint Tina Peters as his new deputy registrar. Peters, a figure at the center of national election integrity disputes, was convicted in 2024 on seven counts related to election interference and sentenced to nine years in prison. The decision has provoked immediate opposition from state lawmakers, local board members, and legal experts who question both the propriety and legality of the hiring. According to Curtis, Peters could assume her duties as early as September 4, provided the arrangement moves forward.

## The Proposed Hiring and Response from Peters
Tina Peters, who previously served as the county clerk in Mesa County, Colorado, has not issued a personal statement regarding the job offer. However, her attorney, Peter Ticktin, confirmed that she is giving serious thought to accepting the position in Shasta County. Peter Ticktin stated, **"She is giving consideration to helping in the efforts in Shasta County, as there most definitely has been monkey business in the way the election was handled."**

Addresssing public concerns over election security, Curtis insisted that Peters would not be granted direct access to the county's voting systems or tallying equipment. However, he declined to detail what her exact job responsibilities would entail. To bypass potential efforts by the Shasta County administration to block a formal appointment, Curtis indicated he might bring Peters on as an independent consultant. Under such a contract, Peters could continue residing in Colorado and Washington, DC while making periodic on-site supervisory visits to Shasta County.

## Political Outcry and Bureaucratic Hurdles
The announcement triggered swift condemnation from high-ranking elected officials. Alex Padilla, a Democratic US Senator from California, expressed strong opposition to the proposal on social media. Alex Padilla wrote, **"This should be stopped immediately: Shasta County Registrar Clint Curtis is trying to hire election-denier Tina Peters to collude with the Trump administration’s election mischief."**

Local governance figures in Shasta County have also raised significant concerns regarding the impact on public confidence. Matt Plummer, a member of the Shasta County Board of Supervisors, acknowledged that Curtis maintains the statutory authority to make departmental hiring choices, but warned of the fallout. Matt Plummer stated, **"Shasta County has gone through a lot of controversy, division, and animosity related to elections, and based on the initial response from the public I’ve received already, recruiting Tina Peters would increase this and reduce trust in our elections."**

Administratively, county leadership highlighted strict policy obstacles that stand in the way of any immediate appointment. Stewart Buettell, Deputy CEO of Shasta County, clarified that no formal application or human resources requisition has been filed to replace the current assistant registrar of voters. Buettell emphasized that any prospective applicant must adhere to standard county hiring procedures. Furthermore, if Curtis attempts to retain Peters via a consulting agreement, county policy mandates a formal contract for services, a process that has not been initiated. Meanwhile, Brent Turner, the current assistant registrar of voters, expressed surprise at news of his potential replacement, stating, **"I believe I’m the assistant registrar. And if anything changes I will certainly let you know."**

## Clint Curtis's Background and Turbulent Tenure
Shasta County, located in Northern California, has gained national attention over the past six years as a stronghold for conservative politics and election skepticism. Clint Curtis himself brings a decades-long history of election-related claims. He first gained national prominence more than twenty years ago when he claimed to have developed a software program capable of altering election outcomes without detection by election officials. Curtis delivered testimony before the US Congress alleging he created the program at the request of Florida state lawmaker Tom Feeney, an assertion Feeney strongly denied.

Curtis assumed his current position in Shasta County in 2025 following the mid-term retirement of former Registrar of Voters Thomas Toller. Despite having no direct experience managing public elections and spending the majority of his career as an attorney and software developer, Curtis was selected by local officials. At the time of his appointment, he resided in Florida and possessed no prior ties to Northern California. During his 2025 interview process, Curtis highlighted his connections with prominent figures known for challenging election results, including Mike Lindell, former national security adviser Mike Flynn, and former Trump adviser Steve Bannon.

Since taking office, Curtis's leadership has been marked by conflict with existing elections staff. Internal and external investigations validated multiple complaints regarding workplace misconduct. An internal inquiry concluded that Curtis engaged in verbal abuse, physical threats, and retaliation against employees within the Shasta County Elections Office. Specific allegations detailed threats by Curtis to have one worker dragged out by her hair and to physical assault another employee. Curtis has consistently denied all allegations of workplace misconduct.

Discontent culminated in the June primary election, where Curtis lost his bid to retain his seat beyond the end of the year. Joanna Francescut, an 18-year veteran of the Shasta County elections department whom Curtis had fired shortly after taking office, defeated him by a wide margin. Following his election loss, the Shasta County Board of Supervisors voted 3-1 to formally censure Curtis. In response to the censure, Curtis publicly accused his staff of bypassing security controls to tamper with voting systems, releasing security footage of an employee opening an office door without using an electronic keycard. When questioned whether he had asked the employee about the incident, Curtis confirmed he had not.

## The 2020 Case and Sentence Commutation of Tina Peters
Tina Peters' legal troubles stem from actions taken during her tenure as Mesa County Clerk in Colorado. In 2024, she was convicted on seven criminal counts relating to security breaches of voting equipment. Prosecutors demonstrated that Peters facilitated unauthorized access to voting machines for Conan Hayes, a former professional surfer associated with pillow executive Mike Lindell, as part of an effort to uncover evidence supporting claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from Donald Trump. Hayes was not charged in connection with the scheme.

Following her conviction, Peters received a nine-year prison sentence. In May, Colorado Governor Jared Polis commuted her sentence following persistent pressure from Donald Trump, who claimed to have issued a federal pardon despite Peters being convicted on state-level charges. Recently disclosed court documents revealed that advisers to Trump coordinated with federal agencies to threaten withholding federal grants and funding from Colorado as part of a campaign to secure Peters' release.

## Legal Analysis and Ongoing Engagements
Election law experts have questioned the feasibility of Curtis's plan, characterizing it as a political gesture rather than a viable administrative decision. David Becker, director of the Center for Election Innovation and Research and a former Justice Department attorney, cast doubt on the effort. David Becker stated, **"This announcement seems to be nothing more than performance art by the current and outgoing clerk, who was rejected by voters in the primary."** Becker added that county officials would face significant legal hurdles attempting to expend public funds or grant administrative authority to a convicted felon.

Furthermore, Peters remains subject to parole conditions that explicitly prohibit travel outside Colorado without prior authorization. Despite these restrictions, she has frequently appeared in person at conservative political events and media outlets since her release, continuing to champion election fraud claims. Peters has also met with Donald Trump in the Oval Office and claimed to have presented election security proposals to leadership at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. Should she proceed with the Shasta County opportunity, she is first scheduled to appear as a featured speaker at the Destroying the Whore of Babylon conference later this month.

## What this means for you
**Across India:** International coverage of US election administration controversies has no direct impact on Indian governance, but reflects broader global discussions around institutional trust.

**In Shasta County (US):** Local voters face ongoing governance friction regarding electoral transparency, administration ethics, and the allocation of county taxpayer funds.

## Questions & Answers

### 1. What position has Clint Curtis proposed for Tina Peters?
Clint Curtis proposed hiring Tina Peters as the deputy registrar of voters or as an election consultant in Shasta County.

### 2. What was Tina Peters convicted of in 2024?
Tina Peters was convicted in 2024 on seven counts related to election equipment tampering and sentenced to nine years in prison.

### 3. How have Shasta County officials reacted to the proposed hiring?
County supervisors and administration officials noted that no formal hiring or contracting process has been initiated, warning that the move undermines public trust.

### 4. When does Clint Curtis's term as registrar end?
Clint Curtis's tenure ends after this year following his defeat by Joanna Francescut in the June primary election.

### 5. Do Tina Peters' parole terms allow out-of-state travel?
No, Tina Peters' parole conditions restrict her from traveling outside the state of Colorado without official authorization.

---
_TrendKia — Har trend, sabse pehle.. Machine-readable view; canonical HTML at the URL above._