DOJ Drops Bid to Toss 20,000 California Ballots
(MENAFN) The US Justice Department on Friday moved to end its lawsuit over 20,000 California ballots, abandoning a push to keep the votes from being counted.
Federal prosecutors had asked a court to force state and Los Angeles County election officials to set the ballots aside, alleging they might have been cast by noncitizens. Every court that weighed in turned the request down. US District Judge David Carter and a three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals both rejected it, and the US Supreme Court refused the administration’s appeal with no noted dissents.
In a court filing, Assistant US Attorney Julie Hamill said Tuesday’s midterm election had concluded and that the disputed ballots would be mixed in with lawful ones before a Nov. 13 hearing. “There is then no way to get the challenged ballots segregated,” wrote Hamill.
The motion went further: “The relief the United States sought and needed is no longer available—rendering voluntary dismissal necessary,” the motion said.
Justice Department spokesperson Kiersten Pels said the case was moot but that the administration “is not backing down” in its push against alleged noncitizen voting. That includes a separate case demanding that California carry out list maintenance on its voter rolls.
In an Oct. 28 ruling, Carter found the request likely unconstitutional, noting that states control their own elections. He called the government’s allegations “not credible.”
Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder-County Clerk Dean Logan said he was “pleased that the administration has accepted the clarity of the court findings.”
California Attorney General Rob Bonta said the administration “has given up its latest unlawful effort to interfere with California’s elections and disenfranchise eligible voters.”
Federal prosecutors had asked a court to force state and Los Angeles County election officials to set the ballots aside, alleging they might have been cast by noncitizens. Every court that weighed in turned the request down. US District Judge David Carter and a three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals both rejected it, and the US Supreme Court refused the administration’s appeal with no noted dissents.
In a court filing, Assistant US Attorney Julie Hamill said Tuesday’s midterm election had concluded and that the disputed ballots would be mixed in with lawful ones before a Nov. 13 hearing. “There is then no way to get the challenged ballots segregated,” wrote Hamill.
The motion went further: “The relief the United States sought and needed is no longer available—rendering voluntary dismissal necessary,” the motion said.
Justice Department spokesperson Kiersten Pels said the case was moot but that the administration “is not backing down” in its push against alleged noncitizen voting. That includes a separate case demanding that California carry out list maintenance on its voter rolls.
In an Oct. 28 ruling, Carter found the request likely unconstitutional, noting that states control their own elections. He called the government’s allegations “not credible.”
Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder-County Clerk Dean Logan said he was “pleased that the administration has accepted the clarity of the court findings.”
California Attorney General Rob Bonta said the administration “has given up its latest unlawful effort to interfere with California’s elections and disenfranchise eligible voters.”
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