Federal judge orders Trump administration to stop threatening election officials over ballot demands
A California federal judge has ordered the Justice Department to halt threats of criminal prosecution against state and local election officials whom the administration pressured to set aside ballots it alleged came from non-citizens, days before the 3 November midterm elections.
BBC World
A federal judge in California has ordered the Trump administration to stop threatening local and state election officials with criminal charges over their role in processing election ballots.
The ruling bars the Department of Justice from demanding that election officials set aside or refuse to process certain ballots that the administration alleges may come from non-citizens. It comes days before the midterm elections on 3 November, which will determine which party controls the US Congress for the final two years of Donald Trump's presidency.
Earlier this month, the justice department sent letters to California's secretary of state and the Los Angeles County Registrar demanding they set aside the ballots of 20,000 registered voters whom the administration "believe" are "likely" non-citizens, according to court documents. About a week later, armed officials from the Department of Homeland Security delivered letters to county officials and employees across California threatening criminal charges if they did not sequester those ballots.
The officials said they could not comply because they are required to follow election procedures set by state and federal law. A judge had already rejected the demand, writing that it would "wreak havoc" in the election. Around the same time, the justice department reportedly opened a criminal investigation into county election officials, issuing federal grand jury subpoenas.
Civil rights groups and unions representing election workers then filed a legal complaint accusing the justice department of interfering with their duty to administer the election. Judge Trina Thompson ordered the administration to halt its actions.
"Although Defendants claim that their actions are designed to halt unlawful voting by noncitizens, their actions are likely to have the effect of interfering with election administration and disenfranchising lawful voters," Judge Thompson wrote. Her order also noted that the administration sent a similar letter to Washington state, demanding that the secretary of state there cease processing ballots from alleged non-citizen voters.
The dispute is part of a yearslong campaign by Trump and his administration against alleged voter fraud, which the president contends is widespread despite research showing it is extremely rare. Ahead of the midterms, Trump has cast doubt on the security of the vote, alleging "rampant" cheating in postal voting and voting by non-citizens, and has offered a $1m (£750,000) reward to people who report voter fraud cases that lead to a conviction.
Studies suggest actual cases are rare. BBC Verify reported that the Heritage Foundation's database identified 24 cases of non-citizens being convicted for voting between 2005 and 2025.
In a post on Saturday, Trump criticised the ruling and recent court decisions against his administration on election fraud allegations, writing, "Why would they reject fixing Election Fraud?" He vowed to continue fighting for "Election Integrity".