President Trump’s Justice Department has issued a 48-hour ultimatum to California election officials, demanding immediate action to verify the citizenship of individuals suspected of being improperly registered to vote ahead of the November 3 midterm elections.
The warning was delivered in a letter sent Tuesday to California Secretary of State Shirley Weber by acting Deputy Attorney General R. Trent McCotter. Federal officials are demanding that the state review a list of suspected noncitizens who may have already received mail-in ballots.
The Justice Department warned that failure to address the concerns within the specified deadline could result in emergency federal court action.
The move represents a significant escalation in the Trump administration’s efforts to enforce federal voting eligibility requirements as millions of Americans prepare to participate in the upcoming congressional elections.
According to the letter, federal investigators provided Los Angeles County election officials with a password-protected thumb drive containing the names of individuals the administration believes may not be American citizens.
The department instructed California officials to examine the information and determine whether the individuals identified are legally eligible to participate in federal elections.
For voters whose citizenship cannot be independently confirmed, federal officials requested that their mail-in ballots be separated from other ballots until their eligibility can be established.
The Justice Department also directed election administrators to take reasonable steps to prevent additional ballots from being issued to individuals on the list whose citizenship remains unverified.
Importantly, the department requested that disputed ballots be segregated rather than immediately canceled. The proposed process would allow officials to determine eligibility before deciding whether the ballots should be counted.
McCotter emphasized that allowing individuals who are not legally eligible to vote could undermine the votes cast by American citizens.
“Allowing noncitizens to vote cancels citizen votes,” McCotter wrote in the letter.
The acting deputy attorney general warned that federal authorities would pursue emergency judicial intervention if California failed to comply with the department’s demands.
Justice Department spokeswoman Kiersten Pels confirmed the administration’s position, emphasizing that federal law restricts participation in federal elections to American citizens.
Pels said the department was prepared to take necessary legal action to protect election integrity and ensure compliance with federal voting requirements.
The warning comes as California prepares for an important midterm election that could influence control of the House of Representatives.
California automatically mails ballots to active registered voters, and ballots for the November election began going out October 5. That means some of the individuals identified by federal authorities may already have received voting materials.
The timing has created urgency for election administrators, who must process ballots while maintaining accurate voter registration records and complying with applicable federal and state laws.
The Trump administration has spent months pressuring states to examine their voter rolls for individuals who may not meet federal citizenship requirements.
In July, the Justice Department sent warnings to election officials in all 50 states, emphasizing that knowingly allowing ineligible individuals to vote could result in legal consequences.
Federal authorities have also requested detailed voter registration information from numerous states to compare with immigration and citizenship records maintained by the federal government.
Those requests have generated legal disputes, with several states resisting demands for sensitive voter information.
The Justice Department has filed lawsuits seeking access to voter registration records, but courts have repeatedly rejected aspects of its efforts to compel states to provide the requested data.
California has been among the states challenging the administration’s approach, arguing that federal officials must respect election administration laws and safeguards protecting voter information.
The latest dispute follows claims by Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin that federal immigration records had identified potentially ineligible individuals on voter rolls in several states, including California.
However, the administration has not publicly established how many individuals on the latest Los Angeles County list are confirmed noncitizens.
Election officials and voting rights organizations have raised concerns about the reliability of federal databases used to identify suspected noncitizens.
They argue that outdated records, clerical errors and incomplete citizenship information can result in eligible American voters being incorrectly flagged.
Naturalized citizens are among those who could be affected if immigration databases do not accurately reflect changes in citizenship status.
Previous investigations have found instances of noncitizens appearing on voter registration lists because of administrative mistakes, although confirmed cases of noncitizen voting remain relatively uncommon.
A review of voter registration problems dating back to 2000 identified more than 30,000 instances in which software errors or clerical mistakes may have resulted in noncitizens being added to registration databases nationwide.
That figure does not establish that those individuals actually cast ballots, and the number represents a small fraction of the country’s registered voters.
The administration nevertheless maintains that citizenship verification is necessary because federal elections must be restricted to legally eligible voters.
The Justice Department recently announced criminal charges involving 16 individuals accused of election-related offenses, including allegations of unlawful voting, fraudulent registration and false citizenship claims.
Those cases involve a variety of alleged violations, and the defendants remain presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
The California ultimatum also comes after a federal judge ruled against a separate Justice Department initiative involving the collection and examination of state voter registration information.
The ruling raised questions about the federal government’s authority to require states to turn over voter records and remove individuals based on disputed citizenship data.
The administration’s latest demand could create another legal confrontation over the division of authority between federal officials and state election administrators.
Under the Constitution, states administer elections subject to applicable federal law, while Congress has authority to regulate aspects of federal election procedures.
That division of responsibilities has become increasingly contentious as the Trump administration seeks greater federal involvement in verifying voter eligibility.
California officials have not publicly announced whether they intend to comply with the latest 48-hour demand or challenge it in court.
The Justice Department has also not disclosed the number of individuals included on the list provided to Los Angeles County.
That information will be important in determining the scope of the requested review and whether the federal government’s concerns are supported by verified citizenship records.
The dispute comes during the final weeks of an election campaign in which immigration enforcement and election administration have become major points of disagreement between Republicans and Democrats.
President Trump has repeatedly emphasized the importance of preventing noncitizens from participating in federal elections, while Democratic officials have argued that aggressive voter verification efforts can create obstacles for eligible citizens.
The immediate question is whether California will complete the requested citizenship review before the Justice Department’s deadline expires.
If state officials refuse or fail to take the requested steps, federal prosecutors could seek emergency court intervention to prevent ballots from being counted before eligibility is verified.
For now, the administration has placed California on a 48-hour deadline, making clear that it is prepared to pursue legal action over suspected noncitizen voters ahead of the November 3 midterm elections.
The post Trump DOJ Gives California 48 Hours to Verify Suspected Noncitizen Voters or Face Emergency Legal Action appeared first on Real News Now.
About Author
