LOS ANGELES – Tensions are rising among local election officials in California as they grapple with a recent directive from the Justice Department under President Donald Trump. The federal government has requested that county registrars sequester ballots believed to have been sent to noncitizen voters in anticipation of the upcoming midterm elections. This request has left many officials confused and frustrated, raising questions about the integrity of the electoral process.
The letters dispatched on Friday seek sensitive personal information, including Social Security numbers, for approximately 20,000 voters. It’s important to note that it is illegal for noncitizens to register or vote in U.S. elections. The Trump administration has repeatedly emphasized that issues of immigrant voting are widespread; however, evidence from various investigations indicates that such instances are exceedingly rare.
“All of this is simply meant to raise huge doubts about the integrity of this election,” remarked John Tuteur, Napa County’s registrar of voters. His comments reflect a broader concern among election officials regarding the implications of the Justice Department’s demands.
As the situation unfolds, California’s election officials have begun counting ballots that have arrived from the state’s vast pool of over 23 million registered voters. “We’re not changing anything we’re doing. We’re proceeding with the election,” Tuteur asserted, emphasizing a commitment to uphold the electoral process despite external pressures.
The Justice Department has imposed a 48-hour deadline for compliance, threatening legal action against any election official who knowingly counts a noncitizen’s vote. In response, the California attorney general’s office has indicated that the information in the letters contains inaccuracies. For example, officials in Mendocino County reported receiving a list that included individuals who were not residents of the area.
This latest development is part of an ongoing legal confrontation between California, a state governed by Democrats, and Trump’s Justice Department as the midterm elections approach. On October 15, the federal government initiated a lawsuit seeking to prevent California from counting mail-in ballots from individuals it has flagged as likely noncitizens. A panel of judges from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals is scheduled to hear arguments regarding the state’s obligation to adhere to these federal demands.
In a notable incident, Tuteur mentioned that two officers from the Department of Homeland Security delivered a letter to his office, naming 42 individuals suspected of illegally registering to vote. With around 86,000 registered voters in Napa County, Tuteur noted that approximately 11,000 residents had already cast mail-in ballots as of Friday. In larger counties like Los Angeles, the number of counted mail-in votes has already surpassed 331,000.
Concerns about the repercussions of the federal actions have extended to the personal lives of election officials. Tuteur expressed his family’s anxiety regarding the situation, underscoring the added stress these developments can create for those involved in the electoral process.
In rural Amador County, Clerk-Recorder Kim Grady received a letter listing four individuals allegedly registered to vote illegally in her jurisdiction. Grady is currently awaiting further guidance from the state to determine the appropriate course of action, uncertain if clarity will arrive before the looming deadline.
The letters sent on Friday follow a statewide sweep by federal authorities earlier in the week, resulting in charges against 28 individuals from the list of 20,000 for illegal registration and voting. These charges could carry severe penalties, potentially leading to years of imprisonment.
Bill Essayli, the chief federal prosecutor in Los Angeles, warned that election officials who do not comply with the government’s requests could also face prosecution. “The letters speak for themselves. Any election official who knowingly processes the ballot of a noncitizen is opening themselves to legal jeopardy,” he stated.
Despite the urgency of the situation, evidence suggests that noncitizen voting remains a rare occurrence. For instance, earlier this month, Attorney General Todd Blanche announced federal charges against ten individuals in Minnesota for illegal voting over the past three elections, a period during which over 8 million ballots were cast in the state.
Amidst these developments, concerns about the accuracy of the federal data used to identify the 20,000 voters have also emerged. Kristin B. Connelly, the Contra Costa County clerk-recorder, expressed skepticism regarding the federal claims, referencing previous incidents where alleged noncitizen voters turned out to be nonexistent. Officials in Los Angeles County echoed these sentiments, finding that a preliminary analysis of the 200 names from the federal list indicated that over 40% had canceled registrations, with more than 70% lacking any voting history, and a significant portion being born in the United States.
