WASHINGTON – The Trump administration has significantly escalated its legal and political confrontation with California ahead of next month’s midterm elections, warning local officials that they could face criminal investigation and prosecution if they process ballots cast by individuals flagged by federal agencies as suspected noncitizens.
The warning, delivered in a letter Friday from a senior Justice Department official, marks a sharp intensification of an ongoing dispute over voter integrity. The correspondence, obtained by The Associated Press, puts California’s election bureaucracy on direct notice, specifically targeting the Los Angeles County Counsel’s office and Secretary of State Shirley Weber.
“The legal consequences for either facilitating or ignoring a federal crime are significant,” wrote Trent McCotter, acting deputy attorney general at the Justice Department. “Noncitizen voting in a federal election is a federal crime—and knowingly facilitating such conduct is equally unlawful. If persons knowingly tabulate ballots cast by individuals identified by federal agencies as noncitizens, they risk becoming aiders and abettors to a federal crime.”
The letter follows a federal lawsuit filed by the Justice Department just one day prior, which seeks to block California from counting mail-in ballots from a list of approximately 20,000 individuals federal authorities claim are “likely” noncitizens. The administration demanded that state officials verify the immigration status of these voters before their ballots are included in the final tally.
This aggressive posture comes less than three weeks before the November 3 election, as both parties fight for control of the U.S. House of Representatives. With over 23 million voters registered in California, the outcome of several key congressional races in the state could ultimately decide which party holds power during the remainder of President Trump’s term.
Election experts and state officials have pushed back against the administration’s tactics. Rick Hasen, a professor at UCLA School of Law, characterized the letter as a dangerous escalation. “It is deplorable that rather than work cooperatively and assist states in their election administration responsibilities, the federal government is making escalating threats and unreasonable demands beyond its power in the middle of an ongoing election,” Hasen said.
State officials have repeatedly questioned the accuracy of the federal government’s claims. In July, the administration alleged that hundreds of thousands of noncitizens were registered to vote across several states, including California, Nevada, and Pennsylvania. However, when the administration later provided a list of 1,500 suspected noncitizen voters in Nevada, subsequent investigations revealed that the number of actual noncitizens on those rolls was zero.
While the Justice Department has charged roughly 90 individuals for election-related misconduct this year—including 50 alleged instances of noncitizen voting—critics argue the administration’s current approach focuses more on intimidation than evidence. Neither the California Secretary of State’s office nor the Los Angeles County Registrar had returned requests for comment as of Friday evening.
Disclaimer: This content is auto-generated for informational purposes only.
Source: Read Original News
