Federal judge denies Justice Department bid to set aside 20,000 California ballots

A federal judge in Los Angeles on Wednesday refused a Justice Department demand that California hold back the ballots of about 20,000 voters whom the Trump administration describes as likely noncitizens, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer and Maine Morning Star.

Judge David O. Carter, a Clinton appointee who sits on the federal trial bench in Los Angeles, issued the decision one day after a lengthy hearing. The Inquirer, publishing a New York Times report, said Carter found that the request would throw an ongoing election into disorder and set aside votes cast by citizens.

"In bringing this lawsuit, the Executive would have this Court believe that it reigns as a sole sovereign. But California and its people are sovereign, too," Carter wrote, as reported by both outlets.

Maine Morning Star reported that federal officials handed the list to California this month and insisted that ballots from those named be kept separate unless the voters could show they are citizens. The department has said Homeland Security assembled the names by comparing a public state voter file with federal records and LexisNexis information. California and Los Angeles County officials have questioned whether the list is accurate.

In his ruling, Carter concluded the demand likely runs afoul of both the National Voter Registration Act and the Civil Rights Act, Maine Morning Star reported. He also pointed out that the list was delivered inside the 90 days before a federal election, a window when large-scale voter purges are not allowed. Prosecuting specific instances of alleged illegal voting remains open to the department, he wrote.

According to the Inquirer, the judge counted at least 31 Justice Department suits seeking state voter rolls and noted the department had lost all 26 that courts have resolved.

Bill Essayli, a senior federal prosecutor in Los Angeles, told the court that state officials were obligated to respond. "What they cannot do is nothing and proceed to count the votes," he said, according to Maine Morning Star. The Inquirer reported Essayli has maintained that no ballots would be thrown out, only paused pending citizenship checks. Carter objected to Essayli's suggestion that election workers might be criminally liable and directed the government to stop making such threats.

Secretary of State Shirley Weber and county elections chief Dean Logan have said sorting out the ballots cannot practically be done and could delay the count beyond Dec. 3, the date by which the state must certify results, Maine Morning Star reported.

The department has asked the 9th Circuit appeals court to review the ruling, Maine Morning Star reported. A panel of that court had already rejected an earlier emergency bid by the department for procedural reasons, and the dispute could reach the Supreme Court within days, the outlet said.

The Inquirer reported that federal officials have made a comparable demand in Washington state, where Secretary of State Steve Hobbs declined, saying the list included citizens. Both outlets said the department has also sued Alaska over certifying its Senate race.

Compiled by True News from reporting by The Philadelphia Inquirer, Maine Morning Star, Tennessee Lookout and Michigan Advance. Each outlet's original story is linked below.

Originally published by True News: https://truenews.bagleyenterprises.net/stories/574