Justice Department warns California officials over ballots from suspected noncitizens

Summary

The Trump administration warned California election officials Friday that they could face criminal investigation and prosecution for knowingly counting ballots cast by suspected noncitizens. The Straits Times reports that officials could be liable as abettors of a federal crime if they count mail ballots from more than 20,000 people the administration says are probably noncitizens. This follows the Justice Department's lawsuit seeking to block California from counting ballots from people it says may be noncitizens.

Timeline

1. The Guardian

   16 Oct 2026, 23:11 UTCSource ↗

   The Guardian reports that the Justice Department warned California officials they could face investigation and prosecution for knowingly tabulating ballots cast by suspected noncitizens, a day after the administration sued the state over ballots from people it identified as likely noncitizens.

2. The Straits Times

   17 Oct 2026, 02:20 UTCSource ↗

   The Straits Times reports that the Justice Department warned Los Angeles County and California election officials they could be liable as abettors of a federal crime for counting mail ballots from more than 20,000 people the administration says are probably noncitizens.

3. The Straits Times

   17 Oct 2026, 02:20 UTCSource ↗

   The Straits Times reports that the Justice Department sued California on Oct. 15 to block the state from counting ballots returned by people it says are noncitizens.