RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CALIFORNIA — Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco announced Sunday that he has indefinitely delayed his election fraud investigation into the Proposition 50 Special Election following legal challenges from California Attorney General Rob Bonta.

Bianco said in a statement shared with CBS News Los Angeles, "We are on hold because of the politically motivated lawsuits and court filings."

The investigation began in March when Bianco seized more than 611,000 ballots from the Proposition 50 Special Election. According to Bianco, a citizens group had identified a discrepancy of 45,000 ballots between the number of votes counted and the number of votes cast.

"This investigation is simple: Physically count the ballots and compare that result with the total votes reported," Bianco said. The sheriff, who is running for governor, defended his actions during an appearance on Lindell TV, stating, "You would have thought the world was ending, and every single Democrat leader in California is now doing everything they can to prevent this count from happening and it really makes you question: why?"

California Attorney General Rob Bonta has made several efforts to stop the investigation. Bonta said it was illegal for Bianco to take ballots from the Riverside County Registrar and begin a recount. He also said Bianco has not identified any crimes in his investigation.

The Attorney General's office wrote in a statement, "The facts have not changed. The Riverside County Sheriff continues to directly defy the Attorney General's instructions, in violation of the California Constitution and state law." The office added, "We are evaluating next steps to ensure a swift and appropriate resolution to this matter."

The UCLA Voting Rights Project filed a petition with the California Supreme Court, arguing that the ballot seizure violated state law on the handling of election materials. The Attorney General's office said it would continue to proceed in both the California Supreme Court and Riverside County Superior Court to "secure compliance with our directives and the return of these ballots to Riverside ROV."

Republican political analyst Luis Alvarado criticized the sheriff's actions. "What Sheriff Bianco is doing is absolutely unprecedented. No other sheriff has ever done anything like this in California," Alvarado said. He added, "The bad thing is, when you try to introduce a doubt about the electoral process, people sometimes are afraid to come out and vote. That is actually a fight against democracy."

Proposition 50, a redistricting measure, passed last fall with 64% of voters approving it. A California court denied the Attorney General's appeal to halt the investigation last week. A hearing is scheduled for Monday morning to review the Attorney General's petition in Riverside County Superior Court to stop the investigation. The Attorney General's office said, "Our focus is on what the Sheriff does, not what he says."