Federal Judge to Weigh California Ballot Dispute Over Citizenship Verification
A federal judge will hear arguments on whether California must pause counting 20,000 disputed ballots amid a Trump administration push for citizenship checks.
POLICY WIRE — Los Angeles, USA — A federal judge is set to preside over a critical hearing this Tuesday regarding a legal challenge from the Trump administration that seeks to block California from counting approximately 20,000 ballots. The Department of Justice is demanding that state officials verify the citizenship status of these voters before their ballots are processed.
The legal battle unfolds with only one week remaining before the November 3 midterm elections conclude. While the administration argues that state and federal laws mandate the exclusion of noncitizen votes, California officials have warned that complying with the request would likely disenfranchise legitimate voters and create significant delays in certifying the final results.
Local election authorities have highlighted technical hurdles, noting that once a ballot is separated from its envelope, it becomes impossible to link a specific vote to an individual voter identification number. Furthermore, state officials have questioned the accuracy of the federal list, citing a sample review that revealed many entries were either inactive, deceased, or appeared to be U.S. citizens.
Reporting by Policy-Wire (PW)
