A federal judge has issued a sweeping order prohibiting the Trump administration from threatening local and state election officials with criminal prosecution over the processing of ballots. The ruling, handed down by U.S. District Judge Trina Thompson, comes just days before the midterm elections, effectively halting a controversial Department of Justice (DoJ) campaign that sought to sequester thousands of votes.
The legal standoff centers on DoJ demands that election officials in California and Washington state set aside ballots from voters the administration identified as “likely” non-citizens. In California, these demands were backed by a high-stakes intimidation tactic: armed agents from the Department of Homeland Security reportedly delivered letters to county employees, explicitly threatening criminal charges if the ballots were not segregated.
In her order, Judge Thompson sided with civil rights groups and unions representing election workers, who argued that the federal government was unlawfully interfering with their administrative duties. Thompson noted that forcing officials to sequester these ballots mere days before the election would “wreak havoc” on the democratic process.
“Although Defendants claim that their actions are designed to halt unlawful voting by non-citizens, their actions are likely to have the effect of interfering with election administration and disenfranchising lawful voters,” Judge Thompson wrote.
The dispute began earlier this month when the DoJ issued demands to the California Secretary of State and the Los Angeles County Registrar to withhold the ballots of 20,000 registered voters. When local officials refused, citing state and federal mandates, the government reportedly initiated a criminal investigation, issuing federal grand jury subpoenas to those overseeing the election.
President Trump, who has spent years promoting the narrative of widespread voter fraud, expressed outrage at the ruling. In a social media post on Saturday, he criticized the court’s decision, questioning, “Why would they reject fixing Election Fraud?” The president has maintained that the integrity of the midterms is at risk, repeatedly casting doubt on the security of postal and non-citizen voting, and even offering a $1 million reward for information leading to fraud convictions.
However, the administration’s claims have consistently struggled to find evidence. Data analyzed by BBC Verify, utilizing the conservative-leaning Heritage Foundation’s own database, identified only 24 instances of non-citizens being convicted for voting in the entire United States between 2005 and 2025. Non-partisan election experts and researchers have long maintained that voter fraud is statistically rare and does not occur at a scale capable of swinging national elections.
Despite the ruling, the administration has signaled it will not abandon its focus on the issue. In his post, the President vowed to continue his fight for “Election Integrity,” suggesting that the legal battle over ballot administration is unlikely to end before voters head to the polls on November 3.
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