Art Tinoco Appointed To Serve As RivCo Registrar Of Voters

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — The Riverside County Board of Supervisors has appointed Art Tinoco to serve as the county's elections chief.

Tuesday's appointment of Tinoco to serve as Registrar of Voters makes permanent the position he has held in an interim role for the last two months following the contentious resignation of his predecessor, Rebecca Spencer.

The Registrar's office is responsible for providing voter resources, registering citizens to vote and protecting the integrity of the ballots for all federal, state, county, city, and special district elections, as well as all measures and propositions in Riverside County.

Tinoco's annual salary is $192,600, Riverside County spokesperson Brooke Federico said.

“After conducting a recruitment, it became clear that we could rely on Art to continue leading the department into the future,” said Board Chair Kevin Jeffries. “Art is a committed public servant, who knows how to conduct complex elections, with up to dozens of contests and measures on a single ballot. He is also moving the department towards more timely results, building enhanced community outreach and trust with the community.”

Tinoco held the position of assistant Registrar for eight years prior to stepping into the interim role. He has been with the Riverside County Registrar of Voters office for more than 21 years, starting as a temporary employee in October 2001. In February 2002, he was hired full-time, according to county officials.

“Voting is fundamental to our democracy, and I am honored to do this work on behalf of all of our residents,” Tinoco said. “I look forward to continuing the preparations for our 2024 Presidential Primary and General Elections and ensuring all eligible citizens in Riverside County have access to register and cast their ballot.”

There are approximately 44 full-time Registrar of Voters office staff, but the team grows exponentially to more than 900 during countywide elections with temporary assignment employees, according to the county.

There are approximately 1.3 million registered voters in Riverside County. (Visit voteinfo.net to register to vote.)

Tinoco was publicly silent during his predecessor's end months. On Sept. 13, officials confirmed that Riverside County Registrar of Voters Rebecca Spencer was placed on paid administrative leave, a move her lawyer said was "retaliatory and political in nature."

Spencer had previously raised allegations of election interference by some of Riverside County's top officials. On Oct. 2 it was announced she had resigned her post as the county's top elections chief.

Rather than go to court over their differences, the county and Spencer entered into a settlement agreement that amounted to $799,591 in payment to her.

To bolster the image of the Registar of Voters office, on Tuesday the Board of Supervisors signed off on a $1.6 million contract with a public relations firm to handle voter outreach campaigns ahead of the 2024 primary and general elections.

In a 5-0 vote without comment, the board authorized Interim Registrar of Voters Art Tinoco to retain the services of Riverside-based Westbound Communications Inc.

The contract runs from Jan. 1, 2024 to Feb. 28, 2025.

"A scope of work has been outlined by Westbound that includes messaging to promote information about the voting process, developing an advertising plan for broadcast, digital, print and social media platforms, conducting a website review to ensure information is current and easy to find, expanding current voter education tools and assets, and establishing new community partnerships," according to a statement posted to the board's agenda Tuesday.

The new agreement is analogous to one currently maintained by the San Bernardino County Registrar of Voters, officials said.

California's primary election day is March 5, and the nationwide general election will be Nov. 5.

"The goal of these enhanced outreach efforts is to increase community knowledge, trust in the electoral process and the county's commitment to election transparency," according to the Registrar's office.

Information about voter registration can be found at https://voteinfo.net/.