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Courts & Justice

Courts reject DOJ bid to set aside about 20,000 California mail ballots

A judge ruled Wednesday and an appeals panel agreed 2-1 Friday, though DOJ calls the voters likely noncitizens and California disputes that.

48 news outlets reported this
Liberal19 outletsCenter14 outletsConservative15 outlets
UpdatedFirst published 4 min readMoney and daily life
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— Judge Carter held Tuesday's hearing and said he is considering a special master, with no order before Wednesday. He asked why the government sued rather than prosecuted, and said threats against election workers should stop. New articles also detail the Washington request: 405 names, Hobbs's response, and a deadline reported as 48 or 24 hours.

Overview

A federal judge in Los Angeles on Wednesday refused a request to make California set aside from about 20,000 people the department says are likely noncitizens. U.S. District Judge David Carter, appointed by Bill Clinton, wrote that the request violates principles giving states control of their elections and that he could not find the government's process credible. The department sued Oct. 15.

Federal prosecutor Bill Essayli said it is not asking to void any ballots, and that it filed an appeal. On Friday the 9th U.S. Circuit again ruled 2-1 against the department, warning of "potentially catastrophic effects on the entire system." Judge Patrick Bumatay, a Trump appointee, .

The Washington Examiner says the department can still seek action before Tuesday's election. According to Axios, a separate federal judge, Trina Thompson, also barred the Justice and departments Friday from threatening election workers with prosecution over counting ballots. Earlier in the week, federal prosecutors asked Washington state to set aside ballots from 405 people they allege are noncitizens.

Washington's secretary of state questioned the timing and reliability of that list. Outlets differ on whether Washington was given 24 or 48 hours to respond.

Three sides of the story

Liberal19 outlets

CBS News and NBC News lead with Carter's ruling and quote his language, including that "Never before in American history" has the federal government sought such a step on the eve of an election. NBC highlights his Nevada example: DHS first flagged up to 15,903 voters, then 185, all of whom Nevada officials said were citizens. Both report Carter's point that prosecutors can seek instead, and Essayli's statement that the department filed an appeal.

NBC also recounts the Monday appeals ruling, including Judge Gabriel Sanchez's concurrence and Judge Patrick Bumatay's dissent. ABC News covers the Tuesday hearing, in which Carter floated an independent reviewer. It notes the 20,000 names are a small fraction of California's 23 million voters, that Los Angeles County found citizens in a small sample, and that data indicates noncitizen voting is exceedingly rare.

The Independent covers the Washington request, quoting Hobbs on timing and noting later reviews in Nevada and Arizona found far fewer noncitizens than first claimed.

Center14 outlets

Newsweek and UPI report Carter's ruling in detail. Newsweek sets out the legal grounds, including standing, preemption and the Purcell principle against late changes to election rules, and says California can keep counting under its usual procedures. It also relays how the government describes its matching method, including DHS and DOJ spokesperson statements.

UPI adds background: DHS's July claim of up to 190,832 noncitizens, the Oct. 13 list, and Carter's point that prosecution under Section 611 is available. Axios, in a roundup, reports Judge Trina Thompson's Friday order restricting DOJ and DHS demands and threats toward election workers. It places that order amid a string of court losses, notes the DOJ's stated rationale, and says noncitizen voting is illegal and rare.

Straight Arrow News covers Friday's 2-1 appeals ruling, stressing the majority's reasoning on state authority and its suggestion to go to , plus Bumatay's dissent and the possible Supreme Court appeal.

Conservative15 outlets

The Washington Examiner reports Friday's 2-1 appeals ruling and Bumatay's dissent that separating ballots "would not cancel any vote." It describes the department's effort as resting on a legitimate integrity concern, since a ballot mixed with others cannot be traced back. It also notes California disputes the list, covers the grand jury subpoenas and Democratic plaintiffs' challenge, and says the department could go to the Supreme Court.

Reason reports Carter's decision and spends most of its space on the government's method as Carter described it: the use of LexisNexis, no error rates, and the fall from DHS's July figure of 190,832 to about 20,000. Fox News focuses on Washington, presenting it as a DOJ announcement of more than 400 noncitizens registered to vote, with Floyd's 1,500-instance count and DHS arrest figures. Breitbart reports 18 more foreign nationals charged with illegal voting in North Carolina, quoting U.S. Attorney Russ Ferguson that every vote matters.

Where outlets disagree
  • How long the Justice Department gave Washington state to review its list of 405 suspected noncitizens
    • CBS News: Prosecutors set a Wednesday deadline for the secretary of state, which CBS describes as two days.
    • Straight Arrow News: Citing NBC News, it reports the state was given a single day for the review.
Money and daily life

For immigrants: Fox News reports that federal officials say a noncitizen who votes could face serious trouble when seeking citizenship, including possible charges for false statements on a naturalization application. Fox also reports that officials say many green card holders were signed up to vote in Washington state without knowing it. For California voters on the DOJ's list, Newsweek reports the ruling lets officials keep counting ballots under existing procedures while the lawsuit continues.

All sources: 136 articles from 48 outlets

Liberal (58)

Center (32)

Conservative (46)

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Justice Department

The federal ministry that prosecutes federal crimes. The FBI is part of it, and its head is the Attorney General.

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Mail-in voting

A ballot sent to the voter by mail and returned filled in. Each state decides who may vote this way and by when the ballot must arrive.

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Appeals court

A court that reviews a lower court's decision for legal mistakes. It does not hear witnesses again, and above the federal appeals courts there is only the Supreme Court.

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Dissent

The written opinion of the judges who disagree with the court's majority. It has no legal force, but it spells out the other side and is often quoted later.

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Supreme Court

The highest US court: nine justices, appointed for life by the president with the Senate's approval. Its rulings bind every other court.

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DHS (Department of Homeland Security)

The federal ministry in charge of borders and immigration enforcement. ICE, CBP and USCIS belong to it, as do the Coast Guard, the Secret Service and the disaster agency FEMA.

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Indictment

A formal criminal charge, usually approved by a grand jury. It is not a finding of guilt: the person is innocent until a court says otherwise.

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Congress

The US parliament: the Senate and the House of Representatives. A bill becomes law when both pass it and the president signs it.

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