Supreme Court Denies DOJ Bid to Halt Counting of 20,000 California Mail Ballots

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday denied the Trump administration's request to pause the counting of more than 20,000 mail-in ballots in California. The Justice Department had asked the high court to intervene on the eve of the midterm elections to stop state officials from tallying votes from individuals the federal government suspects are non-citizens.

The ruling follows a series of lower court decisions that blocked the federal government's initial attempts to separate the disputed ballots. Last week, a split panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit rejected a temporary restraining order sought by the Justice Department. The majority opinion, written in a 2-1 decision, stated that the court declined to undermine the Constitution's plain text by contravening the Elections Clause.

U.S. District Judge David O. Carter, who oversees the case, also denied the administration's emergency motion in a detailed opinion. Carter argued that granting the request would disrupt an already underway election and create a chilling effect on both voters and election workers. He noted that the federal government had previously provided only vague explanations regarding the methodology used to identify the 20,000 potential non-citizens.

Carter scheduled an expedited hearing for Nov. 13 in Los Angeles federal court to examine the reliability of the data used to build the list of suspected non-citizens. He indicated that election officials have until Dec. 3, the deadline for certifying results, to resolve the issue, making an emergency injunction unnecessary in his view.

In its renewed motion, the Justice Department argued that once a mail ballot is processed, it cannot be undone if the voter is later found to be ineligible. The federal government originally filed suit against California on Oct. 15, after the state refused to voluntarily sequester the ballots following the distribution of mail votes to all registered voters.

California state officials, including Secretary of State Shirley Weber and Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean Logan, argued that they lacked the legal authority and mechanisms to freeze mail ballots until citizenship could be verified. The case is part of a broader federal effort, as the Justice Department has sued 30 states that refused to turn over voter data, losing the majority of those cases so far.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta reacted to the administration's legal strategy on social media on Saturday. He described the President as having a loose grip on both law and reality, asserting that there is no widespread voter fraud and that the federal government has no right to interfere in California's elections.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass criticized the Supreme Court request in a statement on Monday. She called the move a desperate attempt to scare voters into staying home and to create doubt about the safety of the elections. Bass encouraged residents to drop off their ballots or head to polling places, noting that the lower courts had already denied the administration's previous attempts.

Hilda Solis, Chair of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, also urged residents to vote. In a statement, she expressed disturbance at the administration's repeated efforts to interfere with the election. Solis reminded the public that Vote Centers are open and drop boxes remain available across the region for those completing their ballots at home.