Trump administration sues California over 20,000 suspected noncitizens on state’s voter rolls

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The Trump administration filed a bombshell lawsuit against California for failing to review a list of more than 20,000 suspected noncitizens in the state who allegedly registered to vote in next month’s midterm election.

The suit filed Thursday came two days after Justice Department officials ordered the state’s election bosses to review the list naming thousands of alleged noncitizens believed to be on California’s voter rolls — giving them 48 hours to comply.

The suit argues that DOJ has an obligation to intervene to prevent the state from permitting noncitizens to vote in federal elections. Under federal law, only US citizens are permitted vote in such elections.

Federal officials supplied Los Angeles County with a password-protected thumb drive identifying suspected noncitizens who were sent mail-in ballots, according to letters sent Tuesday to Secretary of State Shirley Weber and LA County Clerk Dean Logan.

Acting Deputy Attorney General R. Trent McCotter warned Logan and Weber in the letter that they would face legal challenge if they failed to review the list in time. Representatives for Logan and Weber didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment on the suit.

Justice Department officials told The California Post that immediate action is needed to ensure that noncitizens who received ballots do not vote in the upcoming election.

“This should not be controversial, as the criminal statute is clear: only American citizens may vote in federal elections. It is a federal crime for noncitizens to vote in US elections, and the DOJ is asking California to ensure that is not occurring,” the officials said.

Logan confirmed in a statement that his office received the letter and the thumb drive, along with a “hand written note providing a password” to access the list of alleged noncitizens on the voter rolls.

He said he did not consider the thumb drive a secure device and hadn’t yet accessed any files. The letter, which Logan made public, does not specify the number of individuals flagged by the federal government.

Logan said his office is working with the secretary of state and attorney general’s offices to decide how to proceed.

McCotter’s suit, which was also joined by Attorney General Todd Blanche and top LA’s top federal prosecutor Bill Essayli, states that the “Federal Government asked California to work collaboratively to identify any noncitizens registered to vote in the State.”

But “California made no serious effort to do so,” the suit says.

Trump administration officials have blasted California’s voting practices, saying the state’s lax rules invited fraud.

The administration has repeatedly portrayed voter fraud and noncitizen voting as widespread, despite studies showing it is rare. 

Gov. Gavin Newsom blasted the lawsuit, calling it a “desperate attempt by Trump to use his politicized Justice Department to try to suppress California voters just three weeks before Election Day.

“The courts have made clear that the federal government has no role in how a state carries out its election process, and now, in the middle of Californians voting, they have asked local officials — who do a damn good job defending democracy — to violate federal law,” Newsom added.

A Reuters investigation found that software glitches and clerical mistakes may have put more than 30,000 noncitizens on voter rolls nationwide since 2000, though it was unclear how many actually voted. 

Federal prosecutors, meanwhile, announced 16 new criminal cases Monday involving alleged noncitizen voting or fraudulent registrations.

A number of voter fraud cases are underway in Los Angeles, including cases of alleged pay-for-votes and illegal immigrants on voter rolls.

Federal officials believe California isn’t doing enough to secure its elections.

“The United States thus sues California to ensure that only American citizens’ ballots are counted in the ongoing federal election,” the suit adds.

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