Local election-integrity group presents audit findings to Murrieta council, alleges large vote discrepancies

At the Feb. 3 meeting a grassroots group calling itself the Riverside Election Integrity Team (REIT) briefed the council on audits it said the group conducted of local election materials and vote tabulation.

John Leonard introduced the group and explained its volunteer audit work. Greg Langworthy presented slide findings the group described as troubling numerical gaps between ballots that entered the registrar's office and the votes tabulated by machines. In the presentation Langworthy cited multiple examples and numeric discrepancies, saying, "The first audit we did, we found that there were 33,888 more votes counted than ballots cast," and later referencing a Prop 50 election where "there were 45,896 more votes counted by the machines than ballots cast." Langworthy said REIT will attend a special Board of Supervisors meeting to press for explanations and that county cybersecurity teams are reviewing possible intrusions.

Council members thanked the presenters and Justin, the city manager, said he appreciated the briefing. No council action was taken; presenters said the Board of Supervisors will consider the group's concerns at an upcoming meeting and the county cybersecurity unit is looking into the claims.

The council and staff noted they had heard the group's concerns and that the appropriate county offices would be the seat of any formal inquiry. The presentation generated questions but no formal local investigation was initiated by Murrieta at the meeting.