Former Shasta County Assistant Registrar Joanna Francescut Files Discrimination and Wrongful Termination Lawsuit Against County
- Elisa Ballard
- 20 hours ago
- 5 min read
Redding, CA – Joanna Francescut, who served nearly 17 years in the Shasta County Elections Office—including as Assistant County Clerk/Registrar of Voters—has filed a lawsuit against the County of Shasta following her termination on May 27, 2025. Francescut was terminated as an at-will employee by the newly appointed Registrar of Voters, Clint Curtis. In the wake of the lawsuit, former Supervisor Patrick Jones stated that Francescut should have been fired for insubordination in 2023, when she allegedly accepted a $1.5 million grant from the Center for Tech and Civic Life (CTCL)—funded primarily by donations from Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan—against the wishes of the Board of Supervisors. The Board had voted 3-2 to accept the grant with the understanding that the funds would be used only for a new elections office or building.
Francescut filed a Complaint for Damages (Case No 210702) on May 19th in Shasta County Superior Court through Beverly Hills-based Blackstone Law, APC. The complaint lists eight causes of action, including age, religious, and gender discrimination; harassment; retaliation under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA); failure to prevent discrimination and retaliation; whistleblower retaliation under California Labor Code § 1102.5; and wrongful termination in violation of public policy. Francescut has requested a jury trial, which is scheduled for April 20, 2027, at 8:45 a.m. in Department 63.
Francescut, who is 43 years old and a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, alleges she experienced age, religious, and gender discrimination. She began her employment with Shasta County on April 1, 2008, as a Clerk/Elections Specialist I. Through multiple promotions, she rose to the position of Assistant County Clerk/Registrar of Voters. According to the complaint, she assumed full operational control of the department when former ROV Cathy Allen went on medical leave.
Alleged Retaliation and Discriminatory Conduct
The lawsuit claims Francescut faced discriminatory and retaliatory treatment after several key incidents in 2024. In April 2024, the Board of Supervisors requested that she retain ballots from the June 2022 primary beyond the legally required destruction period.
Francescut alleges that she requested a compensation adjustment for working out of classification for nearly seven months, but the request was never approved.
In spring 2024, the Board considered candidates for the permanent County Clerk/Registrar of Voters position. Although Francescut applied, Thomas P. Toller was selected.
On May 10, 2024, Supervisor Kevin Crye allegedly requested access to recall petition signatures, which Francescut refused, citing California Elections Code §17400.
During Board interviews on June 19, 2024, Supervisor Crye reportedly commented that Francescut was “too young” for the position.
On April 30, 2025, Clint Curtis was selected as ROV, and Francescut alleges that Curtis later made disparaging public comments about her.
Francescut had previously expressed her intention to run for the Registrar of Voters position in the upcoming election cycle. This created a challenging dynamic after Curtis assumed leadership, as Francescut had been an internal candidate for the role and was now reporting directly to him. Some observers raised concerns about potential divided loyalties, questioning whether her continued presence in a senior position might undermine the authority and effectiveness of the new Registrar of Voters.
Francescut was terminated on May 27, 2025, with no performance issues cited in the termination letter. Following her termination, Curtis told media outlets that she was an at-will employee and later stated he had tried to transfer her to another department but could not because she lacked a college degree, which meant she couldn't qualify for any other position.
Francescut filed a Government Claim form with the County on November 18, 2025, and received a Right-to-Sue Notice from the California Civil Rights Department on May 18, 2026.
County’s Concerns Regarding Performance
According to public statements from some Board members and election observers, Francescut was passed over for the permanent ROV position due to alleged repeated failures to follow state law and Board directives, including:
Using the incorrect local randomized alphabet draw instead of the Secretary of State’s statewide draw in the March 2024 primary.
Alleged deficiencies in maintaining the proper chain of custody for ballots.
Limitations placed on meaningful election observer access.
A reported discrepancy of 2,783 ballots between counted ballots and voter records in the November 2024 election.
Continuing to count ballots on December 3, 2024, after informing observers that counting had ended.
Allegedly failing to accurately report 1% manual tally errors to the Secretary of State.
Accepting and allegedly modifying a CTCL grant (“Zuckerbucks”) contract against the Board’s direction that funds be used only for a new elections building.
Allegedly failing to inform Supervisor Patrick Jones after he repeatedly asked Francescut about whether CTCL had agreed to the funds only being used for a new building.
Public opposition to Voter ID and hand-counting of ballots. Lobbied against hand-counting after the County Board voted to cancel the Dominion voting machine contract and move to hand-counting.
Ignoring election observers' concerns that signature verification for the mail-in ballots was being done too quickly (less than 1 second per signature) and not in a careful manner.
Ignoring voter registration rolls that had non-existent addresses or addresses at post office or mailbox locations, in violation of state laws.
Allegedly creating a hostile environment for election observers, who were not allowed to speak or use the restrooms inside the Elections Office.
Alleged violations of California Code Regs. Title 2, §20873 (a-b) - Rights of Election Observers. "An election observer shall have the right to check and review the preparation and operation of the tabulating devices, their programming and testing, and observe any or all phases of the election."
Alleged violations of California Code Regs. Title 2, §20873 (j-k) and §20876 - Violations of election observers' rights to have proper notification and have questions answered.
According to Patrick Jones, in 2024, Francescut allegedly contacted the California Department of Justice to complain that Board of Supervisors Patrick Jones and Kevin Crye, who had come to the Elections Office to observe the ballot counting and duplication, were intimidating the Election Office employees.
On June 19, 2024, during the public interviews for the Shasta County Clerk/Registrar of Voters position held in the Board Chambers, Supervisor Crye asked Francescut, "What changes would you make to the Elections Office?" She stated she was not prepared to answer that question.
Clint Curtis states that there was an alleged unauthorized intrusion into the internal Elections Office communications system by Francescut and one other unidentified person six months after Francescut had been terminated from the position, and he has turned over the evidence to the U.S. Department of Justice and to the Shasta County IT Department.
Shasta County voters will soon decide on June 2, 2026, who will serve as Registrar of Voters/County Clerk. Will it be Clint Curtis, or Joanna Francescut? Curtis welcomes the public to observe the upcoming election processing at the Elections Office at 1643 Market St., Redding, CA 96001, and says he will provide pizza and cookies to the observers in the observation lounge, making all processes visible so "there is nothing to fight over."
The case filed by Francescut is in its early stages. The County of Shasta has not yet filed its formal response. Developments will be monitored as the April 2027 trial date approaches.
