Freedom Updates
Advocates in Action
Press Release
ADVOCATES FOR FAITH & FREEDOM
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: MONDAY, Novembe 21, 2022
CONTACT: Nicole Velasco at
media@faith-freedom.COM
Ninth Circuit Rules Election Integrity Project®California has Standing to Challenge Constitutionality of California’s Election Laws, Regulations and Procedures
For Immediate Release 11/21/2022, Santa Clarita, California – The Ninth Circuit has ruled that Election Integrity Project®California (EIPCa) and recent and future congressional candidates have standing to challenge the Constitutionality of California’s election laws, regulations, policies and procedures that have weakened or removed integrity from the election process. Though the Constitution gives authority to state legislators to pass laws to manage elections and process ballots, EIPCa asserts they do not have carte blanche authority to pass laws that diminish the value of lawfully cast ballots.
The decision remanded the lawsuit to the lower court for discovery, which is the next phase of the litigation.
Over the last decade, California has passed laws, orders and regulations that have led to massive irregularities, culminating in the 2020 election, when Governor Newsom authorized mailing a ballot to all “active” registrants on the voter rolls and former Secretary of State Alex Padilla gutted signature verification requirements. EIPCa received over 700 affidavits signed under penalty of perjury from EIPCa-trained observers who consistently reported election workers not adequately verifying signatures and, in some cases, counting ballots without signatures.
Because neither the state legislature nor Alex Padilla required uniform and secure vote casting and counting procedures, uneven procedures were applied across counties. EIPCa and its co-plaintiffs filed this lawsuit against Governor Newsom, the Attorney General, the Secretary of State, and thirteen county registrars.
“This lawsuit is monumental because it is the first to challenge the constitutionality of California’s election laws and procedures, and we are the first to get past standing,” says Mariah Gondeiro, lead attorney with Advocates for Faith and Freedom. “If we win, California will be required to enforce secure and uniform vote casting and vote counting procedures.”
“For over a decade, Election Integrity Project®California has researched and documented every aspect of California’s election process and identified how these laws transformed an Election Day into a 60-day election season fraught with easy to manipulate procedures,” says Linda Paine, President of EIPCa. “We are now seeing California Style laws in states across the country creating the same problems that have been witnessed and documented by EIPCa-trained observers in California for years.”
Press Release
ADVOCATES FOR FAITH & FREEDOM
FOR IMEDIATE RELEASE: WEDNESDAY, November 16, 2022
CONTACT: NICOLE VELASCO AT 951-304-7583 or
MEDIA@FAITH-FREEDOM.COM
For Immediate Release 11/16/2022, Murrieta, California – Advocates for Faith & Freedom has secured a six-figure settlement award this week for a group of Goleta Water District employees who were subjected to a discriminatory vaccine policy.
On June 1, 2022, Plaintiffs filed a lawsuit against Goleta Water District and several government officials after they were provided with religious exemptions against the vaccine and were given one of two unreasonable choices: take an unpaid leave of absence, or pay for bi-weekly COVID-19 tests, which could cost up to $800 a month. Unvaccinated employees were also restricted from entering certain buildings and were required to wear an N95 mask.
“We’re happy to see these Plaintiffs vindicated and receive substantial reimbursement,” commented Robert Tyler, President of Advocates for Faith & Freedom. “This judgment sets a precedent that government officials will be held accountable when they discriminate and retaliate against employees for exercising their religious beliefs.”
The settlement resulted not only in Goleta Water District agreeing to pay each plaintiff $25,000, but also agreeing to enter into a judgment in favor of the plaintiffs.
Press Release
Advocates for Faith & Freedom
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: friday, july 1, 2022
CONTACT: nicole velasco @
media@faith-freedom.COM
For Immediate Release 07/01/2022, Murrieta, California – Thursday evening, June 30, 2022, Federal Judge Beth Labson Freeman of the Northern District of California enjoined Santa Clara County’s vaccine policy – a first in California.
The county’s COVID-19 vaccine policy gave accommodations to employees with medical exemptions in the form of transfers and reassignments while placing employees who sought religious exemptions on unpaid leave.
Judge Freeman wrote:
The County admits that in assisting exempt employees in high-risk roles with transfers to available County positions in other risk tiers, the County gives “those with disability or medical contraindication vaccine exemptions . . . ‘preferential consideration’ pursuant to California State Disability Regulations and the Americans with Disabilities Act.” Marquez Decl. ¶ 41. The Court finds that this portion of the Accommodations framework likely “operate[s] in practice” in way that “target[s] religious practices” by placing those with religious exemptions at a disadvantage behind those with secular exemptions (medical and disability). Stormans, 794 F.3d at 1076 (quoting Lukumi, 508 U.S. at 535–37). Thus, Plaintiffs have shown that they are likely to succeed in proving that this portion of the Accommodations framework is not operationally neutral.
“Santa Clara County’s trend of acting discriminatory towards people of faith in relation to COVID-19 received another rebuke from a federal court,” says Robert Tyler, President of Advocates for Faith & Freedom. “Discrimination against Christians and other people of faith will not be tolerated.”
“We will not stop fighting for the courageous employees of Santa Clara County until they have been fully repaid their lost wages and benefits, which were stripped away because of their religious beliefs” says Mariah Gondeiro, an attorney for Advocates for Faith & Freedom.
###