The US Justice Department sued California on October 15, asking a federal court in Los Angeles to stop the counting of mail ballots from more than 20,000 voters it alleges are likely noncitizens. Reuters reported that the request concerns the November 3 midterm elections; the allegation does not establish that those voters are ineligible.
The department says Homeland Security compared public voter-registration files with federal immigration records. Its announcement describes the analysis as preliminary and ongoing. California sends a mail ballot to every registered voter, making the accuracy of the federal list central to the dispute.
The suit followed a 48-hour deadline to review names supplied on a thumb drive, according to Reuters. The government seeks to have affected ballots set aside until citizenship is verified. The complaint asks for verification beyond the citizenship declarations used when people register to vote.
In her October 15 response, Secretary of State Shirley Weber said federal officials had not provided the underlying data or methodology she requested. She said California requires applicants to attest to US citizenship under penalty of perjury and maintains procedures to remove ineligible registrants.
Weber argued that the demands threaten eligible voters and conflict with federal and state law, including restrictions on systematic voter removals during the 90 days before a federal election. Governor Gavin Newsom separately called the lawsuit an attempt to suppress voting. Those are California officials' positions, while federal officials say their action protects election integrity.
Weber said her office would review proof of ineligibility and supporting information, then take appropriate lawful steps. She rejected excluding thousands of voters solely on unsupported suspicions. The federal complaint seeks court intervention; its filing is a request for restrictions, not a judicial finding that the named voters lack citizenship.
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