A three-judge panel of the Ninth US Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against the Trump administration on Monday in a dispute over California’s handling of mail-in ballots. The Justice Department had sought to compel state election officials to segregate approximately 20,000 ballots from registered voters it identified as non-citizens, issuing a 48-hour deadline for compliance. California’s secretary of state declined to implement the order, prompting the federal lawsuit.
The decision represents a procedural obstacle to the administration’s broader efforts to expand federal oversight of elections ahead of November’s midterm contests. Voting rights advocates and Democratic officials have contended that the administration’s actions are designed to sow doubt about election integrity during a period of significant political competition. The ruling also follows other recent conflicts between California’s state government and the Justice Department, including criminal charges filed against 28 green card holders earlier this month on allegations related to voter participation.
Questions persist regarding the accuracy and origin of the Justice Department’s list of non-citizen voters. Court documents from the preceding week indicated that Los Angeles election officials examined a sample of 200 individuals from the list and determined that a substantial portion were born within the United States. State officials have criticized the Justice Department for declining to disclose the data and methodologies underlying its claims. California’s secretary of state characterized the allegations as “vague and unsubstantiated,” noting that the Department of Homeland Security had previously claimed California contained 190,000 potentially non-citizen registered voters without elaborating on its findings.
State officials celebrated the court’s decision as a vindication of voting rights protections. California’s attorney general described the ruling as a rejection of what he termed unlawful federal overreach, while the state’s governor characterized recent actions as an “assault on democracy.” The Trump administration has maintained that ineligible voting represents a significant concern, with the president announcing a financial incentive for citizens reporting instances that result in arrests or convictions.
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