Federal prosecutors urged Washington to set aside ballots tied to more than 400 people they say may have registered without U.S. citizenship, raising questions about ballot handling as the Nov. 3 election approaches.
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) said its Civil Rights Division told Washington in July that it was examining voter-registration records. In an Oct. 26 public announcement, prosecutors called for ballots cast by people on the list to be held until their citizenship could be confirmed. The department said the step was intended to protect citizens’ votes.
Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs said his office received a letter seeking information about people on the state’s voter rolls and was reviewing that information request under state and federal law. The state described the letter as a request for voter-roll information; the DOJ’s public announcement made the call to hold ballots. Hobbs accused the department of trying to undermine confidence in the election results. His office also warned that federal screening can mistakenly identify U.S. citizens as noncitizens, and said one record cited in the letter dates to 1994.
The two sides described different risks: the Justice Department said holding ballots would protect citizens’ votes, while Hobbs’ office warned that incorrect flags could jeopardize eligible voters’ votes. Washington scheduled ballots for more than 5.1 million registered voters to be mailed by Oct. 16, so the federal call came during the state’s mail-voting period.
A related case in California remains pending after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit dismissed the Justice Department’s emergency appeal on Oct. 26. The court dismissed it for lack of appellate jurisdiction, reasoning that the district court had not yet had enough opportunity to consider the request. The ruling did not decide whether any of the more than 20,000 voters involved were eligible. The opinion identified an Oct. 27 district court hearing as the next step.
In Washington, ballots placed in drop boxes are due by 11 p.m. ET (8 p.m. PST) Nov. 3. Mailed ballots must be postmarked by Election Day.
