{"id":70165,"date":"2026-06-03T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-03T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/?post_type=alerts&#038;p=70165"},"modified":"2026-06-03T07:00:18","modified_gmt":"2026-06-03T11:00:18","slug":"michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race","status":"publish","type":"alerts","link":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/news-alerts\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\/","title":{"rendered":"Michael Gates, who helped lead DOJ\u2019s voter roll grab, advances in California attorney general race"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Michael Gates, a former Trump Justice Department official who <a href=\"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/timeline-tracking-the-trump-justice-departments-anti-voting-shift\/\" target=\"_blank\">helped lead<\/a> the administration\u2019s aggressive crusade for state voter data, <a href=\"https:\/\/electionresults.sos.ca.gov\/\" target=\"_blank\">advanced<\/a> Tuesday night to California\u2019s general election for attorney general.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It sets up a November matchup against incumbent California Attorney General Rob Bonta (D), one of the country\u2019s most active <a href=\"https:\/\/oag.ca.gov\/news\/press-releases\/attorney-general-bonta-defeats-trump-administration%E2%80%99s-effort-dismiss-states%E2%80%99\" target=\"_blank\">legal opponents<\/a> of Trump\u2019s attacks on voting and elections. Bonta will be heavily favored.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"sign-up\n\t\">\n\t<div class=\"sign-up__inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"sign-up__header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"sign-up__eyebrow text--h6\">\n\t\t\t\t\tSIGN UP TODAY\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"sign-up__title text--h1\">\n\t\t\t\t\tGet updates straight to your inbox \u2014 for free\t\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"sign-up__desc\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<p>Join 350,000 readers who rely on our daily and weekly newsletters for the latest in voting, elections and democracy.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"sign-up__form\">\n\t\t\t<script type=\"text\/javascript\" src=\"\/\/js.hsforms.net\/forms\/embed\/v2.js\"><\/script><script>hbspt.forms.create({ region: \"na1\", portalId: \"48216804\", formId: \"edec34b6-42b8-45e1-81d7-ef15f8bdee00\" });<\/script>\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Gates, a Republican and former Huntington Beach city attorney, finished in the top two in California\u2019s open primary for attorney general. Under California\u2019s top-two system, all candidates run on the same ballot regardless of party, and the two highest vote-getters advance to November.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Gates\u2019 advance gives California Republicans a statewide candidate with direct ties to the Trump administration\u2019s effort to use DOJ\u2019s Civil Rights Division to seize voter rolls and push restrictive voting policies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe are going to make sure that elections are safe, that we have election integrity by enforcing election laws,\u201d Gates said when announcing his candidacy in January.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Gates briefly served as deputy assistant attorney general in the Civil Rights Division under <a href=\"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/analysis\/legacy-media-paints-harmeet-dhillon-as-plucky-underdog-fighting-woke-ideology\/\" target=\"_blank\">Harmeet Dhillon<\/a>, a longtime conservative attorney and Trump-loyalist tapped to lead the division. The Civil Rights Division is the part of DOJ that has historically enforced federal civil rights laws, including voting rights protections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Before joining DOJ, Gates served as an attorney for the city of Huntington Beach, where he staunchly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/news-alerts\/huntington-beach-attorney-behind-voter-id-law-defense-appointed-to-doj-civil-rights-division\/\" target=\"_blank\">defended<\/a> its voter ID requirement for municipal elections, against a lawsuit from California. When he <a href=\"https:\/\/www.huntingtonbeachca.gov\/news_detail_T4_R293.php\" target=\"_blank\">announced<\/a> his DOJ appointment, Gates said he would work \u201cto advance President Trump\u2019s \u2018America First\u2019 agenda, fight to restore law and order throughout the country, and fight to restore faith in the Nation\u2019s justice system.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He also touted his role in Huntington Beach, saying the city had \u201csuccessfully ushered in, and successfully defended in court, the State\u2019s very first local VOTER ID law.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Gates has also been <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reformcalifornia.org\/voter-guides\/california\" target=\"_blank\">endorsed<\/a> by Reform California, a conservative group that pushed a sweeping and restrictive <a href=\"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/news-alerts\/sweeping-gop-backed-anti-voting-measure-qualifies-for-california-ballot\/\" target=\"_blank\">statewide ID initiative<\/a> onto the November ballot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At DOJ, Gates helped lead one of the administration\u2019s California voter roll cases. In June 2025, the department <a href=\"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/news-alerts\/doj-cuts-off-negotiations-sues-orange-county-ca-over-voter-records\/\" target=\"_blank\">sued<\/a> Orange County Registrar of Voters Robert Page, claiming the county had failed to turn over unredacted voter records the administration demanded.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The complaint was signed by Gates and sought a court order forcing the county to provide the information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Voting rights advocates have warned that the Trump administration\u2019s demands for sensitive voter data are part of a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/news-alerts\/trump-doj-falsely-tells-court-it-doesnt-want-voter-data-to-purge-rolls\/\" target=\"_blank\">broader push<\/a> to purge voter rolls under the false premise of widespread voter fraud.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Gates\u2019 short DOJ tenure ended under disputed circumstances.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A federal personnel document <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ocregister.com\/2025\/11\/14\/michael-gates-former-huntington-beach-city-attorney-was-fired-from-the-justice-department-for-cause\/\" target=\"_blank\">obtained<\/a> by the Orange County Register indicated Gates was terminated \u201cfor cause,\u201d meaning the department said it had a reason to fire him.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Gates <a href=\"https:\/\/laist.com\/news\/huntington-beachs-michael-gates-produces-letter-he-says-confirms-he-resigned-from-doj\" target=\"_blank\">denied<\/a> that he was fired and said the allegations against him were a \u201c100% fabrication.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Bonta has taken the opposite posture toward Trump\u2019s election agenda. In April, he co-led a multistate lawsuit <a href=\"https:\/\/oag.ca.gov\/news\/press-releases\/attorney-general-bonta-co-leads-lawsuit-challenging-president-trump%E2%80%99s-executive\" target=\"_blank\">challenging<\/a> Trump\u2019s sweeping election executive order, which sought to restrict voter eligibility and mail-in voting by giving the federal government more control over voter lists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With Bonta and Gates advancing, California voters will face a stark choice in November: whether to keep the state\u2019s top legal office in the hands of one of Trump\u2019s most prolific courtroom adversaries, or elevate a Republican who steered the administration\u2019s anti-voting crackdown.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Michael Gates, a former Trump Justice Department official who helped lead the administration\u2019s aggressive crusade for state voter data, advanced to California\u2019s general election for attorney general.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":70166,"template":"","meta":{"content-type":"","header_eyebrow_text":"","header_subtitle":"","display_share_icons":true,"custom_share_text":"","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"manual_last_updated":"","sortable_date":"2026-06-03 07:00:00","auto_update_manual_last_updated":false,"related_links":[],"_display_featured_image":true,"footnotes":""},"article-type":[47],"state":[38],"topic":[58],"coauthors":[338],"class_list":["post-70165","alerts","type-alerts","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","article-type-democracy-alert","state-california","topic-voting"],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/AP26014712417348-1024x683.jpg","yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.5 (Yoast SEO v27.5) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Michael Gates, who helped lead DOJ\u2019s voter roll grab, advances in California attorney general race - Democracy Docket<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Michael Gates, a former Trump Justice Department official who helped lead the administration\u2019s aggressive crusade for state voter data, advanced to California\u2019s general election for attorney general.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/news-alerts\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Michael Gates, who helped lead DOJ\u2019s voter roll grab, advances in California attorney general race\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Gates\u2019 advance gives California Republicans a statewide candidate with direct ties to the Trump administration\u2019s effort to use DOJ to seize voter rolls and push restrictive voting policies.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/news-alerts\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Democracy Docket\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/democracydocket\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-06-03T11:00:18+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/AP26014712417348-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1707\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"Michael Gates, who helped lead DOJ\u2019s voter roll grab, advances in California attorney general race\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"Gates\u2019 advance gives California Republicans a statewide candidate with direct ties to the Trump administration\u2019s effort to use DOJ to seize voter rolls and push restrictive voting policies.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@DemocracyDocket\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"Yunior Rivas\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.democracydocket.com\\\/news-alerts\\\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.democracydocket.com\\\/news-alerts\\\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\\\/\",\"name\":\"Michael Gates, who helped lead DOJ\u2019s voter roll grab, advances in California attorney general race - Democracy Docket\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.democracydocket.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.democracydocket.com\\\/news-alerts\\\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.democracydocket.com\\\/news-alerts\\\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.democracydocket.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/AP26014712417348-scaled.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-03T11:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-06-03T11:00:18+00:00\",\"description\":\"Michael Gates, a former Trump Justice Department official who helped lead the administration\u2019s aggressive crusade for state voter data, advanced to California\u2019s general election for attorney general.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.democracydocket.com\\\/news-alerts\\\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.democracydocket.com\\\/news-alerts\\\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.democracydocket.com\\\/news-alerts\\\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.democracydocket.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/AP26014712417348-scaled.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.democracydocket.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/AP26014712417348-scaled.jpg\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":1707,\"caption\":\"Michael Gates addresses supporters while announcing his candidacy for California Attorney General Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Huntington Beach, Calif. (AP Photo\\\/Damian Dovarganes)\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.democracydocket.com\\\/news-alerts\\\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.democracydocket.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"News\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.democracydocket.com\\\/news-alerts\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Michael Gates, who helped lead DOJ\u2019s voter roll grab, advances in California attorney general race\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.democracydocket.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.democracydocket.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Democracy Docket\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.democracydocket.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Michael Gates, who helped lead DOJ\u2019s voter roll grab, advances in California attorney general race - Democracy Docket","description":"Michael Gates, a former Trump Justice Department official who helped lead the administration\u2019s aggressive crusade for state voter data, advanced to California\u2019s general election for attorney general.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/news-alerts\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Michael Gates, who helped lead DOJ\u2019s voter roll grab, advances in California attorney general race","og_description":"Gates\u2019 advance gives California Republicans a statewide candidate with direct ties to the Trump administration\u2019s effort to use DOJ to seize voter rolls and push restrictive voting policies.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/news-alerts\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\/","og_site_name":"Democracy Docket","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/democracydocket\/","article_modified_time":"2026-06-03T11:00:18+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2560,"height":1707,"url":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/AP26014712417348-scaled.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_title":"Michael Gates, who helped lead DOJ\u2019s voter roll grab, advances in California attorney general race","twitter_description":"Gates\u2019 advance gives California Republicans a statewide candidate with direct ties to the Trump administration\u2019s effort to use DOJ to seize voter rolls and push restrictive voting policies.","twitter_site":"@DemocracyDocket","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"3 minutes","Written by":"Yunior Rivas"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/news-alerts\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\/","url":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/news-alerts\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\/","name":"Michael Gates, who helped lead DOJ\u2019s voter roll grab, advances in California attorney general race - Democracy Docket","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/news-alerts\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/news-alerts\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/AP26014712417348-scaled.jpg","datePublished":"2026-06-03T11:00:00+00:00","dateModified":"2026-06-03T11:00:18+00:00","description":"Michael Gates, a former Trump Justice Department official who helped lead the administration\u2019s aggressive crusade for state voter data, advanced to California\u2019s general election for attorney general.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/news-alerts\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/news-alerts\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/news-alerts\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/AP26014712417348-scaled.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/AP26014712417348-scaled.jpg","width":2560,"height":1707,"caption":"Michael Gates addresses supporters while announcing his candidacy for California Attorney General Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Huntington Beach, Calif. (AP Photo\/Damian Dovarganes)"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/news-alerts\/michael-gates-advances-in-california-attorney-general-race\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"News","item":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/news-alerts\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Michael Gates, who helped lead DOJ\u2019s voter roll grab, advances in California attorney general race"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/","name":"Democracy Docket","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/alerts\/70165","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/alerts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/alerts"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/alerts\/70165\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":70197,"href":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/alerts\/70165\/revisions\/70197"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/70166"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=70165"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"article-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article-type?post=70165"},{"taxonomy":"state","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/state?post=70165"},{"taxonomy":"topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/topic?post=70165"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=70165"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}