Judge denies Justice Department bid to set aside 20,000 California ballots
A federal judge on Wednesday rejected the Justice Department’s request for an emergency order requiring California to segregate roughly 20,000 mail-in ballots from people the Trump administration says are “likely” noncitizens, ABC News reported. U.S. District Judge David Carter wrote that the order would disrupt an election already underway. The midterm election is Tuesday, Nov. 3.
The ruling: Carter denied the administration’s application for a temporary restraining order, a short-term emergency order, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, according to California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office. Carter wrote that the request would “wreak havoc and disrupt the election that is already underway” and “discount the votes of United States citizens,” ABC News reported.
The case: The Justice Department sued California earlier this month, accusing the state of failing to review a list of alleged noncitizens that the administration says were sent mail-in ballots, ABC News reported. Bill Essayli, who leads the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Central District of California, argued the administration wanted the state to comply with federal law barring noncitizens from voting.
The other side: Los Angeles officials said in court papers that a preliminary analysis of 200 names on the list included a “high percentage” of people who say they were born in the United States, ABC News reported. Bonta’s office said the administration has admitted the list could include several U.S. citizens. Bonta has also asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit.
Earlier ruling: Earlier this week, a federal appeals court panel rejected, 2-1, a separate Justice Department request for an immediate order to segregate the ballots, ABC News reported. The lawsuit itself is still pending.