The Department of Justice (DOJ) is taking California to court after state election officials there refused to segregate the ballots of more than 20,000 registered voters whom federal authorities have identified as likely being "noncitizens" of the United States.
The emergency lawsuit, which was filed Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, seeks to stop California from counting the mail-in ballots from those "likely noncitizen" voters in the November 3 election unless their U.S. citizenship can first be verified. For context, California automatically mails a ballot to every active registered voter in the state.
Attorney General Todd Blanche announced the DOJ's action Thursday:
The Department of Justice sent a list to California election officials of more than 20,000 individuals who @USCIS and @HSI_HQ identified are likely noncitizens and who are on California’s voter rolls. This is of serious concern because California automatically mails ballots to every active registered voter on its voter rolls, whether a voter has requested a mail ballot or not. We provided California an opportunity to self correct its records and we requested that it segregate the suspected illegal ballots for the upcoming election. California has refused to comply and intends to facilitate noncitizens in voting, which is a violation of federal law. So, today we filed an emergency court action against California seeking to ensure that noncitizens who received ballots in California do NOT vote in the upcoming election. Election integrity is a top priority for Americans and the Justice Department.
— Attorney General Todd Blanche (@AGToddBlanche) October 15, 2026
The Department of Justice sent a list to California election officials of more than 20,000 individuals who @USCIS and @HSI_HQ identified are likely noncitizens and who are on California’s voter rolls. This is of serious concern because California automatically mails ballots to every active registered voter on its voter rolls, whether a voter has requested a mail ballot or not.
We provided California an opportunity to self correct its records and we requested that it segregate the suspected illegal ballots for the upcoming election. California has refused to comply and intends to facilitate noncitizens in voting, which is a violation of federal law.
So, today we filed an emergency court action against California seeking to ensure that noncitizens who received ballots in California do NOT vote in the upcoming election. Election integrity is a top priority for Americans and the Justice Department.
This latest move comes after the DOJ on Wednesday gave California officials 48 hours to review the "likely noncitizen" names provided by the federal government and determine if any U.S. citizens had been accidentally included.
It's important to note that the DOJ was not asking that those individuals be removed from state voter rolls; rather, they wanted those votes segregated while their citizenship status was being verified.
California Secretary of State Shirley Weber refused that request and argued that federal officials had not provided enough evidence to question whether those 20,000 individuals were ineligible to vote.
Federal law bars noncitizens from voting in federal elections, and with voting already underway in California, the issue is one that will need a speedy resolution.
Editor’s Note: The 2026 Midterms will determine the fate of President Trump’s America First agenda. Republicans must maintain control of both chambers of Congress.
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