The United States Justice Department has ordered election officials across California to identify suspected noncitizens on voter rolls and set aside their mail-in ballots until their citizenship can be confirmed. The directive, sent in letters on Friday, gives counties 48 hours to commit to working with federal officials on the checks.
The move is the latest escalation in a fast-moving dispute over California’s voter rolls, less than two weeks before the November 3 midterm elections. Federal officials say they are trying to stop ineligible votes from being counted. California officials say the federal lists are unreliable and the demands risk delaying certification and undermining confidence in the election.
What happened
Letters from the Justice Department went to election officials in California’s counties on Friday, October 24. The letters asked counties to work with the Justice Department and the Department of Homeland Security to determine, for each person on an accompanying federal list, whether that person is a citizen or not.
For anyone whose citizenship cannot be confirmed, the letters asked counties to segregate — in other words, set aside — that person’s vote-by-mail ballot until the question is resolved. The letters stressed that the ballots should not be cancelled at this stage.
The letters also warned that counties refusing to cooperate could face what the Justice Department called “significant federal scrutiny.” In a letter to San Bernardino County officials seen by CNN, First Assistant US Attorney Bill Essayli warned that officials who knowingly count ballots cast by people federal agencies have identified as noncitizens risk becoming aiders and abettors of a federal crime.
The 48-hour demand
Counties were given 48 hours to commit to the citizenship checks. The demand follows a similar, earlier request: on October 13, Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter gave Los Angeles County and California Secretary of State Shirley Weber 48 hours to review a federal list of suspected noncitizens who had been sent mail-in ballots, and threatened to seek emergency court relief if they did not comply.
That earlier letter included a password-protected thumb drive containing names of people the administration said it believed were likely noncitizens. It asked officials to temporarily set aside ballots where citizenship could not be confirmed, rather than cancel voter registrations.
The new letters widen that approach from Los Angeles County to counties across the state. Reports differ slightly on the count — Reuters, citing the New York Times, said letters went to all 58 counties, while NBC News reporting put the figure at 57 counties, with Los Angeles County having received a similar notice the week before.
The lists themselves are described by the Justice Department as a subset of more than 20,000 people across California it identified last week as possible noncitizens who may have received ballots. In San Bernardino County, the list contained 1,133 names. The Justice Department has said at least 20,000 is the floor, not the ceiling, for the number of people involved.
Background: lawsuits, charges and a court fight
The letters did not arrive in isolation. They are part of a broader federal push on voter rolls ahead of the midterms:
- Last week, the Trump administration sued California, seeking to temporarily block the counting of more than 20,000 mail ballots sent to people it said were suspected of registering to vote despite not being US citizens.
- Earlier in the week, federal authorities charged 28 people from the list of 20,000 with illegally registering to vote. Some were also charged with illegally voting and lying on naturalisation paperwork.
- On Thursday, the administration asked the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals to intervene before a lower court had ruled, arguing that once disputed ballots are mixed in with others, the effect cannot be undone. A federal judge has scheduled a hearing on the lawsuit for next week.
- Separately, the White House has pushed federal agencies to speed up reviews of at least 47 state voter rolls obtained by the Department of Homeland Security, according to an internal email seen by Reuters.
Voting in California is already under way. The state has more than 23 million registered voters, and ballots were mailed earlier this month. In legal filings, California has said more than 330,000 mail-in ballots have already been counted — more than 331,000 in Los Angeles County alone, according to the Justice Department’s emergency filing.
Why it matters
Noncitizens are prohibited by federal law from voting in federal elections, and the Justice Department says some people on its lists have already been criminally charged over alleged illegal registration and voting. From the federal government’s perspective, setting ballots aside now preserves the chance to check them before they are counted and certified.
From California’s perspective, the stakes are different. State officials argue that the federal data is unreliable, that the demands threaten to delay certification, and that eligible voters could be caught up in a process built on mistaken identities. The dispute therefore goes beyond one state’s ballots: it tests how far the federal government can go in directing how local officials handle voter rolls in the final days before an election.
For voters, the practical effect is narrow but real. The letters do not cancel anyone’s registration, and they do not remove any counted vote. They ask counties to hold specific ballots — those linked to names on the federal lists whose citizenship is unconfirmed — apart from the main count until the status of each voter is resolved.
What California officials say
California officials have pushed back firmly. Secretary of State Shirley Weber has accused the administration of trying to unlawfully access protected voter data and purge voter rolls, saying such efforts undermine confidence in elections. California’s lawyers have argued in court filings that the federal request threatens to delay certification and risks disenfranchising citizens.
Senator Alex Padilla of California said late Friday that the administration had not produced evidence for claims of widespread fraud and was relying on inaccurate and unreliable data. He said election officials were being threatened without legal authority to interfere.
Local officials have also questioned the accuracy of individual lists. In rural Inyo County, the registrar of voters said the list she received contained just two people, neither of whom had been issued ballots, and that her records showed they had never voted anywhere in California. In Mendocino County, the clerk-recorder said the list she received was completely wrong, describing it as voters from another county.
The Justice Department and the California attorney general’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment when the letters were first reported.
Timeline
- October 13: The Justice Department gives Los Angeles County and Secretary of State Shirley Weber 48 hours to review a federal list of suspected noncitizens sent mail-in ballots, including a password-protected thumb drive of names.
- October 16: The Justice Department warns Los Angeles County and California election officials they could be liable as abettors of a federal crime if they count mail ballots from the more than 20,000 people the administration says are probably noncitizens.
- October 19: Federal authorities announce charges against 28 people from the list of 20,000 over alleged illegal registration, with some also charged over illegal voting.
- October 23: The administration asks the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to step in urgently, and federal prosecutors say Los Angeles County has already processed more than 331,000 mail-in ballots.
- October 24: Letters go to counties across California, giving them 48 hours to commit to citizenship checks and asking them to segregate, not cancel, ballots where citizenship cannot be confirmed.
What happens next
Three things will decide how this plays out. First, the 48-hour deadline: whether counties commit to the checks, refuse, or seek court guidance. Second, the court track: the 9th Circuit’s response to the emergency request, and next week’s hearing on the lawsuit seeking to block counting of the disputed ballots. Third, the lists themselves: whether county-by-county checks confirm the federal government’s identifications, or turn up more errors like those reported in Inyo and Mendocino counties.
Until those questions are answered, the disputed ballots sit in a kind of limbo — neither counted nor cancelled — while the election itself moves forward. Readers can follow further developments in our US News section.
Frequently asked questions
What did the Justice Department order California counties to do?
It ordered counties to help identify suspected noncitizens on voter rolls and to set aside — segregate — their mail-in ballots until citizenship can be confirmed. It did not ask counties to cancel voter registrations.
How many ballots are involved?
The Justice Department says more than 20,000 people across California were identified as possible noncitizens who may have received ballots, and that 20,000 is a minimum figure. The county lists are subsets of that total — for example, 1,133 names in San Bernardino County.
Does “set aside” mean the votes will not count?
Not necessarily. Segregating a ballot means holding it apart from the main count while citizenship is checked. Whether it is ultimately counted depends on the outcome of that check and on any court rulings.
What is California’s objection?
State officials say the federal data is unreliable, pointing to county examples where lists contained errors, and argue the demands risk delaying certification and disenfranchising eligible citizens. They also dispute the federal government’s legal authority to direct local election officials in this way.
What happens before the election?
Counties face a 48-hour deadline to commit to the checks, the 9th Circuit is considering an emergency request, and a federal judge has scheduled a hearing on the underlying lawsuit for next week — all before the November 3 midterms.