That’s why the plaintiff in the lawsuit, the American Civil Liberties Union, argued that these laws are outdated and violate freedom of expression. ACLU insists that voters should be free to take pictures of their ballots, upload them to social media and use them to persuade their friends.
California legislators have actually already repealed those laws but the reversal does not come into effect until January 1, 2017. So, the ACLU lawsuit essentially sought to move that effective date to cover the elections this year.
However, the judge refused to do that. He stated that suspending the old laws less than a week before the election would be “a recipe for confusion.” “No one is at fault more than the ACLU for bringing this lawsuit at the last minute and trying to jam this down their throat,” Alsup said.
California Secretary of State Alex Padilla issued a statement, "I supported a new law that is paving the way for “ballot selfies” to be permitted under state law. This new law will go into effect on January 1, 2017. In the meantime, voters can still take a selfie with their ‘I Voted’ sticker... Californians can still use their smartphones at the polls. Many voters use their smartphones to access their sample ballot or notes they have made about candidates and ballot measures.”
So, ballot-box selfies will be allowed at future elections in California but not before January 1, 2017.