Trump administration asks high court to hold 20,000 California ballots

More than 20,000 mail ballots in California are currently at the center of a legal dispute between the federal government and state election officials. The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court on Monday to intervene in the case. The request seeks emergency relief to force state workers to set aside votes cast by individuals on a government list of suspected noncitizens.

The legal conflict began after the Justice Department and Dean Logan, the Los Angeles County registrar-recorder, produced a list of 20,000 people. Officials claimed these individuals were registered to vote but lacked U.S. citizenship. They demanded that any returned ballots from these voters be isolated and excluded from tabulation until their citizenship was verified. State officials expressed concern that the list contained errors and might disenfranchise eligible voters.

U.S. District Judge David Carter granted a temporary restraining order on Wednesday. He blocked election workers from counting the specific ballots while the citizenship status was reviewed. Carter, appointed by President Bill Clinton, stated that constitutional rights and the public interest favor protection. He argued that individuals meeting California's registration requirements should not lose a core right due to unfounded allegations from a procedure with known errors.

A three-judge panel on the 9th Circuit reviewed the case on Friday. The panel divided 2-1 in denying the Justice Department's request to keep the ballots separated. The higher court's decision allowed the state to proceed with its standard processing of mail-in votes.

Solicitor General D. John Sauer filed the emergency appeal to the Supreme Court following the 9th Circuit's ruling. He described the government's request as a modest remedy. The goal is to ensure that ballots cast by noncitizens do not dilute valid votes. Sauer wrote that once California mixes the challenged ballots with lawful ones, there is no way to retrieve them. He argued that segregating the votes now is the only method to preserve the district court's ability to grant relief after a full merits proceeding.

More than 6 million mail ballots have been returned statewide as of Sunday. Voting in California has been underway since early October. The state has more than 23 million registered voters. The Supreme Court has not yet issued a ruling on the emergency request.

California election officials continue to process the returned mail ballots. The Justice Department and Los Angeles County officials are preparing for further proceedings while awaiting a decision from the high court.