Justice Department Appeals Ruling on California Ballots

The Justice Department has appealed a federal judge's decision that allowed California to count ballots potentially cast by noncitizens, requesting an expedited review from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. The department argues that a swift ruling is necessary because "irreversible ballot processing occurring on an ongoing basis" could compromise the integrity of the vote.

This appeal follows U.S. District Judge David O. Carter's forceful rejection of the department's last-minute attempt to compel California to segregate the ballots from its official count. The Justice Department believes these ballots were sent to individuals registered to vote who are not U.S. citizens. Early voting in California has been underway for weeks, with millions of ballots already cast.

Judge Carter's ruling marks the latest legal setback for the Trump administration's efforts to assert greater federal control over state election processes during the midterm elections. The Justice Department has made similar requests in other states, including Washington. Noncitizen voting has been a recurring theme in President Trump's political rhetoric, though data suggests it is an exceptionally rare occurrence.

President Trump criticized Carter's decision, calling California's elections "extremely corrupt." He stated his intention to appeal, claiming without evidence that "hundreds of thousands" and later "millions" of "bad ballots" exist in California.

Carter, appointed by President Bill Clinton, contended that the Justice Department's demands violated the National Voting Rights Act, which prohibits changes to voter rolls or election procedures within 90 days of an election. He also raised concerns about the accuracy of the department's list, acknowledging that some citizens might have been inadvertently included. Separating these ballots at this stage, Carter argued, could disenfranchise eligible voters and disrupt the election certification process.

In Los Angeles County alone, over 500,000 votes have already been processed. Court filings indicate that once a vote is processed, it cannot be traced back to the individual voter, preserving voter privacy.

Judge Carter is still expected to rule on the federal government's request for a preliminary injunction, which would halt the counting of these disputed ballots until the litigation concludes. He previously suggested that if the government suspects noncitizens are voting, it could pursue criminal prosecutions, noting that federal authorities have already charged over two dozen foreign nationals in California as part of an effort targeting individuals officials say have illegally registered or voted.

The Justice Department maintains that preventing fraudulent voting before it occurs is in the government's interest. Prosecutors have also argued that delaying the tabulation of these ballots while citizenship is verified would not disenfranchise voters, a claim disputed by county election officials.

This is not the first time the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has considered the case. Last week, the department argued before a panel that an immediate ruling was needed to prevent the counting of these ballots. Although that panel found it premature for an appellate court to intervene before a lower court ruling, two of the three judges expressed skepticism about setting aside votes at such a late stage, citing concerns about the accuracy of the federal list and the potential to disenfranchise citizens. One dissenting judge, however, argued that federal law mandates vetting potentially illegal ballots before they are counted to prevent irreparable harm to the election.