Court denies Fresno County appeal. Sheriff and DA elections to move election cycles
Fresno County’s district attorney and sheriff will serve a six-year term through 2028 after a California appeals court recently declined to hear an appeal on Measure A.
The 5th Appellate District Court denied the petition on July 16, meaning the lower court’s decision was upheld.
The court dealt the loss last month to Fresno County, which sued to keep the elections for Sheriff John Zanoni and District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp on the gubernatorial election cycle and not aligned with the presidential election.
Smittcamp brushed off the decision, saying she is focused on the mission of her office.
“I am not surprised by the appellate court’s ruling following the well-reasoned opinion issued by Fresno County Superior Court Judge Tharpe,” she said in a statement. “While the legal process surrounding Measure A created some uncertainty, it never affected our mission.”
A Fresno County Superior Court judge ruled June 2 to invalidate Fresno County’s Measure A. The 2024 ballot initiative aligned Fresno County District Attorney and Sheriff elections with the off cycle, which has a lower voter turnout than those on the presidential cycle.
Fresno County voters passed Measure A with 55% of the vote.
State Attorney General Rob Bonta argued Fresno County was running afoul of the law. Assembly Bill 759 aligned those elections statewide with the presidential cycle.
The most recent presidential election in Fresno in 2024 saw an almost 60% voter turnout, while the off cycle election two years earlier drew 27% of voters, according to the Fresno County Registrar of Voters.
This story was originally published July 22, 2025 at 2:00 PM.
