Shasta County’s top elections official, Clint Curtis, said he wants to hire former Colorado election clerk Tina Peters as a consultant in the county elections office.
Curtis said Peters could replace Brent Turner, his top deputy, who is currently on medical leave.
Peters was convicted in 2024 of seven charges, including four felonies, stemming from a breach of election equipment while she served as clerk in Mesa County, Colorado. Prosecutors said Peters allowed unauthorized access to the equipment as she sought evidence to support false claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from Donald Trump.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis commuted Peters’ nearly nine-year sentence in May, and she was released from prison on parole June 1.
“Tina Peters has a great deal of experience in elections and actually cares if they are fair,” Curtis said in an email.
Since leaving prison, Peters has made appearances on news outlets and at events, where she has continued to promote false claims about the 2020 election.
"Tina Peters is giving consideration to helping in the efforts in Shasta County, as there most definitely has been monkey business in the way the election was handled," said Peter Ticktin, Peters' lawyer.
Shasta County has become a center of disputes over election administration in recent years, as some residents and officials have promoted unsubstantiated claims of widespread election fraud.
The Shasta County Board of Supervisors appointed Curtis as county clerk and registrar of voters in 2025. He pledged to overhaul the county’s election system and make it more transparent and secure.
Voters rejected Curtis in the June primary, choosing former Assistant Registrar of Voters Joanna Francescut to replace him. She will take office in January.
The Board of Supervisors also censured Curtis this month over findings that he violated county personnel policies and engaged in disrespectful and abusive conduct toward staff. Curtis has disputed the findings and accused employees of sabotaging his efforts to reform the elections office.
County Supervisor Matt Plummer said he had received many emails and phone calls from people concerned about Peters potentially working in the elections office.
"To the extent it could happen, it seems likely to only increase those divisions and heighten tensions," he said.
Whether Peters could take the job remains unclear.
Curtis said he would like to hire her as a consultant rather than as a regular county employee.
"That way, I can protect her from false accusations by having her work without actual access to the voting system," he said.
Peters remains on parole in Colorado and would need permission to travel outside the state. Deputy County Executive Officer Stewart Buettell said Peters has not filed a job application with the county.
Buettell said hiring a consultant would follow a different process from hiring a regular employee. Curtis may also need approval from the Board of Supervisors before hiring Peters.
