The U.S. Justice Department said Oct. 19 it had charged 28 people and arrested 11 in California election cases, as it sought to delay counting ballots tied to a much larger disputed citizenship list.
All four U.S. attorneys’ offices in the state took part in the operation. The department described the 28 defendants as lawful permanent residents who are not U.S. citizens. The cases include allegations of fraudulent voter registration; the department says most defendants cast ballots in U.S. elections. Some also face allegations of false statements in applications for citizenship. The charges remain allegations.
The broader dispute concerns more than 20,000 people on California’s voter rolls whom the department considers likely noncitizens. The Justice Department says all 28 defendants appear on that list, which it says it sent to the Los Angeles County registrar on Oct. 13. Those cases do not establish the citizenship or voting history of everyone on the list.
In a complaint filed Oct. 15, the federal government asked a judge to prevent mail ballots associated with the list from being counted until the registrants’ citizenship is checked. It argues that doing so would prevent dilution of American citizens’ votes. The request is before the court; it is not a ruling.
California requires U.S. citizenship to register to vote and sends mail ballots to active registered voters. Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter said the state should check the citizenship of people on the list before counting their mail ballots.
Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean C. Logan said his office had not opened a USB drive the Justice Department said contained the list because of information security concerns. He said federal officials had not provided the evidence or method behind their claims. Logan said the county could not withhold or refuse to count ballots solely on unverified allegations.
California Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber has also challenged a separate federal claim, made in July, that 190,000 noncitizens were on the state’s voter rolls. She called that earlier claim unsubstantiated. California’s general election is Nov. 3.
