9th Circuit Rejects Emergency Bid to Set Aside California Ballots

With just over a week remaining before the Nov. 3 midterm election, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied an emergency bid by the Trump administration and the U.S. Department of Justice to force California to set aside thousands of mail-in ballots over allegations that they were sent to non-citizens, according to NBC Bay Area.

Appellate judges ruled that the 9th Circuit lacks jurisdiction because a lower federal district court—which is scheduled to hear arguments Tuesday afternoon—has not yet issued a ruling on the Justice Department’s request.

Contra Costa and Bay Area Counties Coordinate With Secretary of State

The Justice Department previously claimed it identified roughly 20,000 potential non-citizens on California’s voter rolls and sent letters to multiple county election offices—including Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Mateo, and Santa Clara counties—demanding that registrars verify hundreds of ballots. Contra Costa, San Francisco, and San Mateo counties are working with the California Secretary of State’s office on their responses.

In Santa Clara County, where federal prosecutors demanded the identification of 902 registered voters, County Executive James Williams stated that the county will not comply without a subpoena or warrant and noted that officials found three duplicates on the first page of the federal list alone.

State Leaders Cite Rare Voter Fraud as Nearly 3 Million Ballots Cast

California Attorney General Rob Bonta praised the 9th Circuit’s order as an important step protecting Californians’ right to vote, noting that “counts, recounts, hand counts, audits – show that voter fraud is exceedingly rare.” Gov. Gavin Newsom also welcomed the appellate decision as a “speed bump” against attacks on the Constitution, while NBC Bay Area political contributor Guy Marzorati noted that nearly 3 million Californians have already cast their ballots.