Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs responded to a Justice Department request asking state election officials not to count ballots from around 400 people the administration believes were cast illegally. Hobbs calls the list provided by the federal government "deeply flawed" in a Oct. 28 statement.
"This list includes United States citizens and is not reliable," Hobbs said.
Acting U.S. Attorney for Western Washington Neil Floyd announced earlier this week that Justice Department provided a list of individuals "who appear to be illegally registered to vote" based on citizenship status to Washington state officials. DOJ officials plan to ask that ballots from these voters be set aside to confirm citizenship and voting eligibility. The list of 400
individuals is "only the tip of the iceberg," Floyd said in a statement and confirmed that the department would continue to investigate the matter.
The Trump administration is pushing a similar request in California, asking the state to set aside 20,000 ballots cast by voters also thought to be illegally registered to vote. On Oct. 28, a U.S. judge rejected the Justice Department's request in California. The administration has sued a number of states for access to their vote rolls but a judge has not yet ruled in their favor.
Voter fraud from noncitizens is an issue touted by President Donald Trump and Justice Department officials that has been proven by data to be rare.
Millions of voters have already cast their ballot for Washington's Nov. 3 general election, according to the state.
Timing of letter is 'profoundly dissappointing'
Hobbs' response to DOJ officials points to the "profoundly disappointing" timing of the request with around one week remaining until election day.
The Secretary of State's office holds regular consultations with the U.S. Attorney's office in the months leading up to an election, Hobbs wrote. Valid concerns about voter registration should have been raised "months ago," he wrote.
"Your decision to wait until the eve of an election and announce those concerns at a press conference instead of timely providing the list and any corroborating evidence to my office is not a sign of good faith to ensure a free, fair, and accurate election," Hobbs wrote.
'Several glaring deficiencies'
In his response to DOJ officials, Hobbs notes that the administration provides no "individualized proof" of voter ineligibility in their list of around 400 voters believed to be illegally casting ballots. The request also leaves out information around how the voter information was collected, Hobbs said.
"Given the Department of Justice’s recent acts of election interference in California, Alaska, and now in Washington, it would be particularly inappropriate for Washington to simply assume the Department’s unsupported allegations here are credible," he wrote.
Hobbs' letter notes that DOJ officials provided the state with a PDF document and printed spreadsheet, instead of an electronic version. The spreadsheet omits Voter ID numbers and street addresses for the voters and includes a number of duplicate entries, according to Hobbs.
"Without individualized proof of ineligibility, it would be both irresponsible and illegal for election officials to decline to process a registered voter’s ballot," he wrote.
The state believes the request was rushed, in part, because DOJ officials state that election day is "November 2, 2026" in the letter instead of the actual date of 2026's general election: Nov. 3.
"Basic factual errors like this are unacceptable and risk confusing voters," Hobbs wrote.
Early analysis by WA shows contradicting voter status
The Secretary of State's office conducted a "preliminary analysis" on the voter information provided by DOJ officials, according to Hobbs, and found that many of the voters on the department's list are either not currently registered to vote or are on inactive status.
In a direct rebuke to the administration's claim of noncitizen voters casting ballots in Washington, Hobbs wrote that many individuals named on the list are U.S. citizens.
"Those already identified may just be the 'tip of the iceberg' of individuals that would be wrongfully disenfranchised by the actions you request," Hobbs said.
Zachary Fletcher is a trending news reporter with USA TODAY Network's Washington state team. Keep up with him on X (@zdfletch), BlueSky (@zfletcher.bsky.social) or reach him at zfletcher@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Washington responds to DOJ ballot request, calling it 'deeply flawed' and 'not reliable'
