According to the California Secretary of State, as of February 10, 2019, Rohnert Park has 22,583 registered voters. Of those, 11,010 (48.8%) are registered Democrats, 4,051 (17.9%) are registered Republicans, and 6,234 (27.6%) have declined to state a political party. Rohnert Park is patrolled by the Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety, established in 1962, that operates as an integrated fire and police department. This is one of only two cities operating Departments of Public Safety in California. On April 29, 1997, Kuanchung Kao was waving a wooden stick in the street in front of his driveway, prompting 911 calls placed by his neighbors, and two officers, Jack Shields and Mike Lynch, responded to the scene. Shields shot Kao once in the chest. Shields stated that he believed Kao was waving the stick in a martial arts fashion, and that he and Lynch had to respond by using deadly force. The incident was investigated by the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office, the Sonoma County District Attorney's Office, and FBI, who all cleared Shields. Kao's family and attorney John Burris filed a lawsuit against the city of Rohnert Park, and received a settlement of $1 million in 2001. On July 29, 2015, Rohnert Park Public Safety Officer Dave Rodriguez drew his sidearm during an encounter with city resident Don McComas, while McComas was hitching his boat trailer to his vehicle. McComas recorded the incident and posted it on YouTube. Officer Rodriguez was placed on administrative leave while the city conducted an internal investigation into the incident. On August 6, 2015, the city announced that it would engage an independent investigator. In October 2015, the city announced the investigators’ findings that Rodriguez’ actions were within the law and followed department policy, stating it was “reasonable” for Rodriguez “to un-holster his duty weapon at the point he did during the encounter with the resident.” McComas was not detained or arrested during or after the incident. A civil rights claim has been filed on behalf of McComas claiming that Rodriguez was trying to intimidate him. The lawsuit concluded in a settlement. On November 16, 2018, a civil rights lawsuit has been filed against Rohnert Park alleging that Rohnert Park police "conspired to expand the legitimate interdiction mission to one of personal financial gain, and over the years seized thousands of pounds of cannabis and hundreds of thousands of dollars of currency without issuing receipts for the seizures, without making arrests for any crimes, and without any official report of the forfeitures being made".