Justice Department Gives California 48 Hours to Review Alleged Noncitizen Voter List
The U.S. Justice Department sent a letter to California Secretary of State Shirley Weber on October 13, giving state officials 48 hours to review a list of alleged noncitizen voters and to handle mail ballots connected to the people on the list as the letter directs, or face legal action, according to Reuters. A Justice Department spokeswoman confirmed the existence of the letter to Reuters.
The letter was signed by acting Deputy Attorney General R. Trent McCotter. It said the department had provided officials in Los Angeles County with a password-protected thumb drive containing the names of people the federal government believes are likely noncitizens and who had been sent mail-in ballots. The letter demands that California send no further ballots to people on the list until their citizenship status has been confirmed; that ballots mailed back by voters who have already received them be segregated; and that ballots already returned not be tabulated until citizenship has been determined.
"Allowing noncitizens to vote cancels citizen votes," McCotter wrote in the letter. It said the federal government "will have no choice but to seek emergency relief" if state officials do not follow its instructions. Justice Department spokeswoman Kiersten Pels told Reuters the department "will take all necessary legal action to protect election integrity and ensure compliance with federal law."
As of publication, the California Secretary of State's office had not publicly commented on the letter. Reuters reported that the office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The dispute over voter data has already reached the courts. The Justice Department previously sued California seeking an unredacted copy of its statewide voter registration list; Weber's office responded on privacy grounds, offering to let federal officials inspect the database in person by appointment. The new letter arrived three weeks before the November 3 congressional election.
Related: America's Electoral System (4): The Midterms: What Is on the Ballot on November 3, 2026
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 加州州议会大厦（萨克拉门托）。Antony-22 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，维基共享资源
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