A man votes at a polling place at the Kenneth Hahn Hall of Administration during California’s state primary election in Los Angeles, California, on June 2, 2026. (Frederic J. Brown – AFP / Getty Images)
By Samuel Short October 26, 2026 at 6:32am
We are eight days from the midterm elections, and shenanigans are already afoot in California.
The Trump administration is moving to block 20,000 mail-in ballots from the state’s count, demanding they be set aside over fears that noncitizens filled them out. If those ballots are put with the others, they will be indistinguishable.
The New York Post reported that First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli, along with Attorney General Todd Blanche, is asking the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to have California put those ballots aside and verify each voter’s citizenship status.
“We believe it’s at a minimum of 20,000. That’s the floor,” Essayli said.
“We’re not asking California to take any drastic steps other than to sequester the ballots from the suspected noncitizens.”
The motion said 331,000 mail-in ballots have been processed already.
California Secretary of State Shirley Weber, along with Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean Logan, are defendants in the case.
The duo refused the request to isolate the ballots.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin already wrote to state officials in July, sounding the alarm about 200,000 voters who potentially lacked citizenship.
According to Fox News, California argued it cannot do anything. County election officials — so the state claims — do not have access to the federal records needed to verify voters’ citizenship.
Reuters reported Monday that a three-judge panel for the 9th Circuit Court met Sunday, and that Circuit Judge Mark Bennett did not seem agreeable to the Department of Justice’s request.
“It seems to me that you want us to issue an injunction that is entirely inconsistent with the law that the California legislature has adopted pursuant to the Elections Clause,” Bennett told Justice Department attorney Matthew Donnelly.
“How can we do that?” he asked.
This is all so tiresome.
Do you trust California to ensure election integrity with mail-in ballots?
California has created an election process almost ensuring fraud. Voters can even use a health club card or a credit or debit card instead of actual ID.
How is this ensuring election integrity?
This process should not be complicated — everyone should vote in person on election day at a polling place and present a government-issued photo ID.
Mail-in voting became prevalent during COVID.
Who filled out the ballot? Great question.
Do mail-in ballots always reach their destination? No.
In Seattle, Washington, 92 mail-in ballots were recently discovered in a dumpster near a local park.
Moves to ensure some level of election security are being made now, not on Nov. 3. By the time we reach Election Day, there may not be anything the honest, law-abiding citizen can do to make an impact with their vote.
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Sam Short is an Assistant Professor of History with Motlow State Community College in Smyrna, Tennessee. He holds a BA in History from Middle Tennessee State University and an MA in History from University College London. The views expressed in his articles are his own and do not reflect the views or opinions of Motlow State Community College.
