US Justice Department orders California counties to set aside ballots of ‘likely’ noncitizens

Federal prosecutors from the US Department of Justice sent letters on Friday to county election registrars across California, demanding that they set aside and verify ballots the department believes may belong to noncitizens. The Los Angeles county registrar and a letter obtained by the Associated Press confirmed this. The move is the latest step in a legal fight between California and the Trump administration ahead of the November midterm elections for the US Congress.

Demands on counties

According to the Los Angeles county registrar's office, at least 18 counties received similar letters. They were given 48 hours to provide identifying information on ballots that the federal government thinks were sent to noncitizens who were illegally registered. Officials are also asked to provide social security numbers, ID details and a copy of each registration. Ballots for which citizenship cannot be verified should be sequestered.

First assistant US attorney Bill Essayli said any election official who knowingly processes a noncitizen's ballot exposes themselves to legal jeopardy. A letter to San Bernardino County says the government's list includes 1,133 suspected noncitizens from that county.

Court action

Earlier this month the federal government sued Los Angeles county and the California secretary of state's office, seeking to block the counting of votes from roughly 20,000 people it calls “likely” noncitizens. A hearing is set for Tuesday. The administration also asked the ninth circuit court of appeals to rule if the district judge does not decide, with a Saturday deadline.

California's lawyers argue that the demand threatens to delay certification of the vote and undermine the legitimacy of the midterms. They also say the federal data is unreliable and could disenfranchise citizens. Data shows that illegal voting by noncitizens is extremely rare and has not been shown to change election outcomes.

Voting is already under way in California. More than 23 million registered voters received mail ballots this month, and over 330,000 have been counted, the state said in filings. Earlier this week, 28 people from the list of 20,000 were charged with illegally registering to vote; some also face charges of illegal voting and lying on naturalization paperwork.