The Justice Department’s bid to separate 20,000 mail ballots in California that they claim are likely noncitizens met another defeat on Wednesday as a trial judge refused to intervene. U.S. District Judge David Carter ruled California can continue to accept the ballots as normal.
In a 26-page opinion, Carter, based in Santa Ana, California, noted that the relief the Department of Justice was seeking was unprecedented in both substance and timing.
“This request violates longstanding constitutional principles mandating that states have control over their elections,” Carter wrote following his ruling.
“If Plaintiff’s last-minute request for relief were granted, either party could create chaos for their own political purposes to disrupt the election process,” he continued. “Over 20,000 registered Californians would potentially lose the right that generations of Americans have fought to preserve.”
California has continued to deny the Justice Department’s request to segregate the questioned ballots. With election day quickly approaching, the department tried to bypass Carter and go straight to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit for a quick ruling. The appeals court rejected the bid after agreeing to hear it over the weekend.
Gov. Gavin Newsom welcomed the ruling from the appeals court, calling it “a positive development and a welcome speed bump to Trump’s disgusting attacks on the Constitution and our country’s democracy.”
“Make no mistake: Trump’s assault on democracy won’t slow down,” Newsom said in a statement. “Each and every one of us can do something: participate in democracy, don’t become disillusioned. Vote early, go to a vote center, put your ballot in a drop box.”
“Once a vote is segregated, lasting harm has occurred,” he continued. “If the Executive can discount votes and threaten an ongoing election due to unproven allegations, then our democracy is in danger. This Court declines to be a party to such process.”
The Justice Department sued California earlier this month, alleging the state was sending 20,000 likely noncitizen ballots for the midterm elections. California has a universal mail-in voting program where all active voters are sent a ballot.
The Justice Department claimed in its lawsuit that it is not requesting a “purge” of the state’s voter rolls or to cancel votes. Instead, it is asking a judge to request that the state set aside ballots that are from individuals on its list of alleged non-citizens.
The Justice Department filed a notice of appeal late Wednesday night. Bill Essayli, the top Department of Justice official in Los Angeles, has said that he expected the case to reach the Supreme Court.
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