20,000 Ballots: Ninth Circuit Blocks Federal Effort To Halt California Vote Count

The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled on Monday against the Trump administration, allowing California to proceed with counting approximately 20,000 mail-in ballots prior to the November 3 midterm election. The decision came in a two-to-one vote that denied the federal government's request to sequester the ballots while a lower court reviews the underlying dispute. By refusing to pause tabulation, the appeals court left the ballots in the hands of state officials for the upcoming vote.

The Trump administration initiated the legal challenge on October 15, less than three weeks before election day. The Justice Department argued that the ballots were sent to individuals who are likely non-citizens, a group ineligible to vote in federal elections. However, the administration has not publicly disclosed the methodology used to create this list or to determine the citizenship status of the voters on it. The department filed the suit in state and federal courts, seeking an expedited decision from the appeals court due to the approaching election date.

Judge Gabriel Sanchez, writing for the majority, stated that the federal government had not provided lower courts sufficient time to properly review the case. He emphasized that election administration is a traditional state responsibility under the U.S. Constitution. Sanchez wrote that the administration was asking federal courts to dictate to a state legislature on a matter squarely within the state's domain. He further warned that granting the petition would invite disorder and confusion for both voters and election officials.

California, a state led by Democrats, has faced repeated claims from President Trump that the state is prone to election cheating. Lawyers for California Secretary of State Shirley Weber described the federal lawsuit as a reckless political stunt in a court filing dated October 20. They argued that the litigation threatened to disenfranchise thousands of Californians. The case is currently being weighed in a lower court, with a hearing scheduled for Tuesday.

The outcome of the November 3 midterms will determine which political party controls Congress. Republicans currently hold slim majorities in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, but experts project that Democrats are on track to make gains, potentially flipping one or both chambers. In the lead-up to the election, Trump has repeatedly raised the prospect of non-citizen voting as a threat to election integrity. However, experts note that such voting is rare, with non-citizens barred from federal elections in all 50 states.

A July investigation by Reuters found only 129 cases of non-citizens charged by federal authorities with illegal voting since 1996. Many of those cases involved administrative errors or uncertainty about voting rules rather than fraudulent intent. Last week, the administration charged 28 immigrants in California with illegally voting. Reporting from the Los Angeles Times indicated that some of the accused reacted with confusion, maintaining they had never registered to vote.

The Justice Department has also sued 30 states and Washington, D.C., for complete access to voter rolls containing sensitive personal data. The department argues that releasing such information is necessary to prevent alleged voter fraud. Opponents have successfully argued in 26 of those cases that the maneuvers could scare away voters and interfere with state election administration. The Trump administration has yet to win any of those 30 cases.