A federal appeals court on Friday rejected the Trump administration’s latest attempt to prevent California from counting mail ballots from more than 20,000 registered voters the federal government alleges are likely noncitizens, handing the administration itssecond defeatthis week.
In a 2-1 decision, a panel of the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declined the Justice Department’s request to block the ballots from being counted while its lawsuit against California proceeds.
The ruling leaves California’s existing ballot-counting procedures in place just days before the Nov. 3 midterm elections, when President Donald Trump’s fellow Republicans are fighting to retain control of Congress.
U.S. Circuit Judges Mark Bennett, a Trump
appointee, and Gabriel Sanchez, appointed by President Joe Biden, pointed to a lower court’s concerns about the reliability of the federal government’s voter list.
“There is a material risk that granting the United States its requested relief would result in disenfranchisement,” Bennett and Sanchez wrote.
The ruling marks the second time this week that the 9th Circuit has rejected an emergency request from the Trump administration involving the ballots. An earlier appeal was turned aside because the Justice Department sought intervention before the district court had adequate time to rule.
The Justice Department then returned to the appeals court after U.S. District Judge David O. Carter denied its request for a temporary restraining order Oct. 28.
Judge warned federal request would ‘wreak havoc’
The dispute stems from a Justice Department lawsuit filed Oct. 15 seeking to require California and Los Angeles County election officials to separate ballots connected to more than 20,000 voters the federal government identified as likely noncitizens.
The Justice Department wanted those ballots held apart and not counted until officials verified that the voters who cast them were U.S. citizens.
California officials have disputed the federal government’s evidence and maintained that the state already has safeguards against noncitizen voting. Noncitizen voting is illegal, and available evidence has consistently found it to be exceedingly rare.
Carter rejected the administration’s request Oct. 28, saying the proposed order would“wreak havoc and disrupt the election” and could have a “chilling effect on election workers and voters alike.”
“Never before in American history has the federal government, on the eve of an election, sought to coerce a state and local government to abandon their own Constitutional election procedures and bend to the will of the Executive Branch,” Carter wrote.
He also said Californians who met the state’s voter registration requirements should not be deprived of their voting rights because of “unfounded allegations stemming from a procedure rife with uncertainty and errors.”
California Secretary of State Shirley Weber has similarly said the state would not disenfranchise thousands of voters based on what she characterized as an “unsupported” and “likely inaccurate” assertion that they are noncitizens.
Los Angeles County election officials have warned that attempting to identify and isolate the ballots in the middle of voting could disrupt the count and make it “virtually impossible” to certify election results on schedule.
Justice Department escalates fight with subpoenas
The court battle is unfolding alongside a separate escalation from the Justice Department.
Los Angeles County election employees havereceived federal grand jury subpoenasordering them to appear in court Nov. 4, the day after Election Day, and provide documents connected to the dispute over voter citizenship.
Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean Logan criticized the federal government’s tactics, saying election workers were following state and federal law.
“At every step, the U.S. Department of Justice has taken a confrontational, adversarial approach,” Logan said after the subpoenas became public. “Threats and intimidation have no place in elections.”
A Justice Department spokesperson said criminal prosecution is an available remedy for unlawful voting and indicated the department would continue pursuing allegations involving noncitizen voters.
California officials have accused the Trump administration oftrying to interferewith the state’s authority to run its elections. Attorney General Rob Bonta has argued that the Constitution gives states and Congress, rather than the president, authority over election procedures.
The Justice Department, meanwhile, says failing to prevent unlawful ballots from being counted would dilute eligible U.S. citizens' votes.
Friday’s decision does not end the underlying lawsuit. But it leaves the disputed ballots subject to California’s normal election procedures as voting continues toward Election Day.
Reuters contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Appeals court again rejects Trump bid to block California ballots
