9th Circuit Rejects Bid to Segregate Late California Mail Ballots

A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday, Oct. 30 rejected an emergency request by the U.S. Department of Justice to require California election officials to segregate mail-in ballots that arrive up to 7 days after Election Day, Nov. 3 (Courthouse News Service).

The panel—consisting of U.S. Circuit Judges Mark J. Bennett, Eric D. Miller, and Danielle J. Forrest—declined to disturb an Oct. 23 ruling by U.S. District Judge Josephine L. Staton in Los Angeles, who dismissed the federal challenge brought alongside Republican congressional candidate David Serpa against California Secretary of State Shirley Weber. Under California law, mail ballots postmarked on or before Election Day are counted if they reach county registrars within 7 days, a window during which more than 232,000 ballots arrived in the November 2024 general election. The 9th Circuit distinguished an earlier 5th Circuit ruling in Mississippi after noting the U.S. Supreme Court has scheduled oral arguments in the Mississippi case for January 2027.

Federal Grand Jury Subpoenas to California Registrars Trigger Lawsuit

Separately on Friday, voting rights organizations filed a federal lawsuit in California against the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security seeking to halt grand jury subpoenas issued to California election offices ahead of Nov. 3 (CyberScoop). Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean Logan confirmed to CyberScoop that his office received multiple grand jury subpoenas last week tied to federal demands that states cross-check voter rolls against federal lists, where the Justice Department claims at least 20,000 potential noncitizens appear and DHS officials have cited up to 190,000 names.

Logan called the federal approach an effort to intimidate election workers who are following state and federal court rulings, while outgoing Shasta County Registrar of Voters Clint Curtis—whose term ends in January—publicly endorsed the federal effort to remove 20,000 names.

High-Speed Rail "Proposition 45" Concept and Campaign "Red-Boxing"

Beyond next week's election, California High-Speed Rail Authority CEO Ian Choudri outlined a potential November 2028 ballot measure—informally dubbed "Proposition 45" to mark 20 years since voters passed the $9.95 billion ($9.95B) Proposition 1A bond measure in 2008—to update statutory construction requirements and unlock private financing (CalMatters). Choudri's plan focuses on building an initial $64.2 billion ($64.2B) segment connecting Gilroy and Palmdale by 2039 as a step toward the $87 billion San Francisco-to-Palmdale corridor, backed by $1 billion per year in state cap-and-trade revenue authorized through 2045. State Sen. Dave Cortese (D-San Jose), chair of the Senate Transportation Committee, cautioned that returning to the ballot carries political risk after an Emerson College Poll earlier this year found 54% of voters still view high-speed rail as worthwhile while 62% lack confidence in the state's ability to complete it.

Meanwhile, campaign finance disclosures examined by CalMatters showed federal and gubernatorial contenders across California continuing to use "red-boxing"—posting public website pages with coded messaging instructions and B-roll video for independent expenditure committees (CalMatters). While Assemblymember Alex Lee's Assembly Bill 953, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2024, restricts the practice in state races, a 3-3 deadlock at the Federal Election Commission in April left red-boxing active in federal contests across California's 3rd, 13th, 22nd, 27th, 41st, 45th, and 48th congressional districts.