Appeals Court Questions Trump Administration Bid to Set Aside 20,000 California Mail Ballots

A three-judge federal appeals panel on Sunday questioned the Trump administration's emergency bid to force California to set aside roughly 20,000 mail-in ballots sent to people the Justice Department suspects are noncitizens ahead of the midterm elections. The Ninth Circuit panel raised questions about both the government's legal arguments and whether the court has jurisdiction to intervene at this stage; a ruling is pending.

Attorneys representing the Trump administration and California argued for nearly two hours at the hearing. The Justice Department wants ballots associated with individuals on its list to be set aside while their eligibility is reviewed, rather than allowing the ballots to be processed alongside other votes.

The federal government asked the panel to rule immediately, arguing that hundreds of thousands of California ballots could be tabulated each day while the dispute remains unresolved.

Circuit Judge Mark Bennett, a Trump appointee, questioned whether the administration's requested injunction could be reconciled with the Constitution's Elections Clause, which gives state legislatures authority over the times, places and manner of congressional elections, subject to congressional regulation. He told Justice Department attorney Matthew Donnelly that the administration appeared to want an injunction entirely inconsistent with the law the California legislature has adopted under that clause.

The panel also questioned whether the Ninth Circuit has jurisdiction to intervene at this stage. Judge Gabriel Sanchez, a Biden appointee, questioned why the Ninth Circuit should weigh in when the district court has yet to rule on the Justice Department's request and a hearing before US District Judge David Carter remains scheduled for Tuesday.

Judge Patrick Bumatay, another Trump appointee, focused more heavily on the government's concerns about potential noncitizen voting and questioned California's handling of challenges involving suspected ineligible voters.

The Justice Department sought emergency relief from the appeals court after Judge Carter did not rule by a deadline the department had requested. California has argued that the Ninth Circuit should not intervene before the lower court has ruled. The department initially filed the suit on 15 October, roughly two weeks after California began mailing ballots.

Before oral arguments, the Trump administration accused California of having a history of mishandling voter rolls. California has disputed the federal government's underlying data while emphasising that it has robust safeguards against noncitizen voting. Los Angeles County officials have said a preliminary review of a portion of the federal government's list identified apparent discrepancies, including people who were born in the United States or were not registered to vote.

In a filing this weekend, California argued that the federal government's theory would turn the Constitution on its head. When it comes to rules of election administration, the state contended, the federal government has no power to interfere with the states unless Congress passes a law governing the time, place or manner of elections.

More than 3 million people have already cast ballots statewide, including more than 500,000 in Los Angeles County, according to figures cited during the litigation. The Justice Department has emphasised the urgency of its request, arguing that each day without a ruling risks allowing additional ballots to be processed before the citizenship dispute can be resolved.

Judge Bennett said the three-judge panel would try to issue a ruling as quickly as possible.