Judge: Holding 20,000 California Ballots Would 'Wreak Havoc' on Election

A federal judge refused Wednesday to let the government set aside up to 20,000 California ballots while citizenship claims are reviewed, writing that such a step "would wreak havoc and disrupt the election that is already underway." U.S. District Judge David O. Carter rejected the request as more than 3.7 million ballots had already been cast in the state and more than 500,000 votes counted.

The Trump administration sued California election officials in mid-October, saying they missed a 48-hour deadline to review a list of 20,000 people the government alleged were likely noncitizens on the state's voter rolls. The government asked Carter to require California to hold those ballots until immigration status could be verified. It also sought a fast ruling from the appeals court before Carter's scheduled Oct. 27 hearing; the appeals court declined.

Carter wrote that setting ballots aside at this stage would force counties to build new ballot-sorting methods and "risk disenfranchising an untold number of voters." He compared the effect to purging voter rolls and said it would violate the National Voting Rights Act, which bars changes to voter rolls within 90 days of an election. "Eroded trust in our democracy is irreparable. Once a vote is segregated, lasting harm has occurred," Carter wrote. He added that he "declines to be a party" to a process where unproven allegations can discount votes during an ongoing election.

Carter also rejected the Justice Department's argument that California was blocking federal enforcement of election law, noting that prosecutors had already charged 28 noncitizens who voted or registered to vote illegally. Federal prosecutors did not respond to emailed requests for comment Wednesday evening.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli argued the case for the government Tuesday. He has said the request would not impede the election and that the Justice Department was trying to "safeguard the elections." "Segregating a ballot does not prevent it from being counted later," Essayli said. "It is designed to preserve the status quo and prevent the infection of our election with illegal ballots."

The California case is one of three federal election actions this week. The Justice Department asked Washington state to sequester ballots from hundreds of people it suspects are not U.S. citizens. A separate lawsuit filed in Alaska last week seeks to delay certification of that state's vote if the Republican incumbent does not win the U.S. Senate race. All three states have House or Senate contests that will help determine control of Congress.

More than 3.7 million California ballots have been cast and more than 500,000 counted as of Wednesday's ruling.