California Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber is challenging a U.S. Justice Department bid to hold ballots linked to more than 20,000 registrants, warning that eligible votes could go uncounted.
The department considers the people on its list likely noncitizens. In an Oct. 15 lawsuit, federal lawyers asked a court to prevent California from counting mail ballots from those registrants in federal elections until their citizenship is verified. The department says the measure would protect citizens’ votes.
The Justice Department says it sent the list to the Los Angeles County registrar on Oct. 13. The registrar confirmed receiving a USB drive from federal officials. Weber says her office did not receive the list or the evidence and method used to compile it. She argues that ballots should not be set aside on that basis.
Separate charges announced Oct. 19 involve 28 lawful permanent residents, 11 of whom were arrested. The department says all 28 appear on the larger list. Prosecutors accuse them of offenses including fraudulent voter registration and, in some cases, false statements in citizenship applications. The department says most cast ballots in U.S. elections.
Those criminal cases remain allegations. Lawful permanent residents may live in the United States but cannot vote in federal elections. The charges against 28 people provide no finding about the citizenship or voting records of the other registrants on the list.
Weber has also disputed a separate federal assertion made in July that 190,000 noncitizens were on California’s voter rolls, calling that claim unsubstantiated. In the current dispute, she warns that holding ballots from people on the new list could leave eligible voters without a counted vote.
The court request remains unresolved as California approaches its Nov. 3 general election. U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California Craig Missakian said the election investigation would continue beyond the vote, The Independent reported.
