The Justice Department is defying a federal judge's order to provide a list of states it has pressured in its crackdown on alleged noncitizen voting. US District Judge James Boasberg had ordered the Trump administration to identify the states and localities it has targeted with demands for voter registration information and ballot-counting practices.
However, the DOJ missed a Friday evening deadline to furnish the court with a list of California voters it sought to remove from the state's rolls. The department stated that it views the judge's order as a "fishing expedition."
This action occurs days before midterm elections, an event Democrats argue is being used by the Trump administration to consolidate federal power and potentially lay the groundwork for contesting election results. President Donald Trump has repeatedly stated the effort is aimed at safeguarding the election process and cracking down on noncitizen voting, though audits and reports indicate instances of illegal noncitizen voting are rare.
The Trump administration has issued over 100 subpoenas seeking voter information from at least 13 US states, according to reports. The Justice Department previously sued California and Los Angeles County to block the counting of ballots from more than 20,000 voters identified as "likely noncitizens." Similar actions were taken against Washington state, and the department has joined a lawsuit seeking to block the certification of Alaska's election results.
Trump himself has used social media to threaten California election officials with jail time if they refuse to comply with requests for voter information. Additionally, the Justice Department sent letters to all states reminding them of their obligation to preserve voting records for 22 months post-election, threatening officials with legal penalties for noncompliance.
US District Judge Trina Thompson has issued stern warnings to the administration, ordering the Justice Department not to "threaten, intimidate or coerce state or local elections officials or workers to demand that they halt processing the ballots" it suspects may have been cast by noncitizens. Thompson emphasized the importance of safeguarding the right to vote free from threat or intimidation to ensure full participation and public trust in elections.