Follow-Up: Ninth Circuit Orders California to Respond by Noon Saturday to DOJ Emergency Request on Ballots
On Saturday, October 24, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ordered California to respond by noon to the Justice Department's emergency request involving roughly 20,000 mail-in ballots that the department says were sent to suspected noncitizens. According to Fox News, the Ninth Circuit issued the order late Friday, hours after the DOJ filed an emergency motion asking the appeals court to rule by Saturday. The department is asking California election officials to set aside ballots associated with individuals on its list while their eligibility is reviewed, rather than processing them alongside other votes. The filing, submitted by Attorney General Todd Blanche and First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli, stated: “This is an emergency,” adding that “every minute of processing that occurs without segregating the ballots of suspected non-eligible voters causes untraceable disenfranchisement and dilution of the votes of United States citizens.”
The DOJ turned to the Ninth Circuit after U.S. District Judge David Carter did not rule by a deadline the department had previously requested; a hearing before Judge Carter on the DOJ's emergency application remains scheduled for Tuesday, and it is unclear whether the appeals court will rule before then.
GSM previously reported on the DOJ's letters to California counties demanding segregation of the ballots within 48 hours; according to the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder's office, as reported by the Associated Press and other outlets, at least 18 California counties have confirmed receiving the letter.
Previously from GSM: Follow-Up: DOJ Sends 48-Hour Ballot-Segregation Letters to 57 California Counties, Warning Officials of Criminal Liability as Counties Push Back
Source: GSM · America
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：加州 Santa Clara 县的官方选票投递箱（资料图）。照片：Yngvadottir，CC BY-SA 4.0，取自 Wikimedia Commons。An official ballot drop box in Santa Clara County, California (file photo). Photo: Yngvadottir, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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- 2026-10-24Follow-Up: Ninth Circuit Orders California to Respond by Noon Saturday to DOJ Emergency Request on BallotsThis story
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