The US Supreme Court on Monday ruled against the Trump administration’s attempt to force California election officials to set aside ballots from people the Justice Department claims are non-citizens. Several lower courts had also sided with state officials, who argued that the federal government was interfering in state elections.
The dispute followed a Justice Department claim that 20,000 non-citizens appeared on California’s voter rolls. In mid-October, the department sent election officials in Los Angeles and Sacramento a USB drive containing names and gave them 48 hours to review the list. It threatened legal action if officials did not hold the relevant ballots until those named could verify their citizenship. Officials refused, prompting a series of court battles.
State officials and voting rights groups challenged the list’s reliability and questioned how it had been compiled. The Justice Department did not provide details of its methodology, while election officials’ analysis identified indications that the list contained inaccuracies. Los Angeles County Clerk and Recorder Dean Logan said the department had not provided the evidence or sources supporting its claim that the people identified were ineligible to vote.
The administration has also threatened to prosecute election officials who process ballots it considers ineligible, opened a criminal investigation in California over alleged non-citizen voting and subpoenaed election officials. A federal district judge rejected its request to segregate ballots on 28 October.
The Justice Department has made a similar demand in Washington state and filed criminal charges against 28 California green card holders whom it accuses of fraudulently registering and casting illegal ballots. The article also reports that data and experts indicate non-citizen voting by ineligible voters is extremely rare.
Sources: The Guardian World.