San Mateo Co. votes on Measure A on whether to give supervisors power to remove Sheriff Corpus
REDWOOD CITY, Calif. (KGO) -- Measure A will decide if the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors will gain the temporary power to remove the sheriff from office.
It's a huge moment in what's been an incredibly contentious political wrestling match.
Some voters say they feel like Measure A is a power grab. Others believe the sheriff needs to go and that Measure A paves the way for that change.
Thousands of voters headed to the polls in San Mateo County today to cast their vote and drop off their ballots in a special election.
"To me, this is a very important vote," said San Mateo resident James Forner who voted against Measure A.
"I think you need to express how we feel about certain officials are running things," said Paul Lee of San Mateo who voted for Measure A.
"I feel like our leaders should be moral and set the right example for our community, so I wanted to come out and vote," said Annie Hsu.
RELATED: San Mateo Co. voters to weigh in on embattled Sheriff Christina Corpus' future
Measure A, if passed, would change the county charter and give the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors the ability to remove the current elected sheriff.
"It's the decision of the voters. I feel like the way they are doing it; they are taking the voter's rights away. It's a slippery slope. So, I voted 'no'," said Julie Schug of Belmont.
Sheriff Christina Corpus is accused of corruption, nepotism, and retaliation within the department.
EXCLUSIVE: Audio reveals 29 missing pages, facts from San Mateo Co. sheriff audit report
She has repeatedly denied those allegations and called the special election a political attack.
"I'm being crucified in the public eye for allegations," said Corpus.
Voters that ABC7 spoke to said they wanted to make their voices heard.
"We vote 'against'," said Ekaterina Lib of San Mateo. "I'm concerned about too much power in the government," said Ekaterina Lib, a San Mateo resident.
"I voted 'no' because I don't want to give my voting power away to other elected officials," said Pat Cuviello. "If we want her out, we'll vote her out when it comes up or someone can do a recall."
"To have the Supervisors act as judge and jury to me is not right," said James Former of San Mateo. "So, I have I have come out to support what our laws say and that is voters put someone in office, then voters are in power to take that person out. "
The County Registrar's Office said it sent out more than 440-thousand ballots to registered voters. Because this is a special election, officials say the turnout will be much smaller.
"Special elections have low voter turnouts as compared to presidential election that may have an 80% turnout; special election can have a 20% turnout-- where we are at right now," said Jim Irizarry, Assistant Chief Elections Officer of San Mateo County.
TIMELINE: San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus investigation
If Measure A passes at the polls, a vote of four out of five supervisors is still required to remove the sheriff. That authority would expire at the end of 2028.
If Measure A fails, a traditional recall election can still be held to remove Sheriff Corpus.
You'll be able to track San Mateo County Measure A here.
