DOJ Sues California Over Mail-In Ballots to 20,000 Flagged Voters

DOJ Sues California Over Noncitizen Mail-In Ballots Sent to 20,000 Flagged Voters

The Department of Justice has filed suit against California and Los Angeles County officials for refusing to verify the citizenship status of more than 20,000 individuals who received mail-in ballots after federal authorities flagged them as possible noncitizens.

Court filings show the federal government gave California a 48-hour deadline to review the flagged voter registrations and determine eligibility before ballots went out. California officials declined, citing security concerns, and proceeded to mail ballots to all registered voters as required under state law.

🚨 BREAKING: DOJ JUST SUED CALIFORNIA for FAILING to meet the 48-hour deadline for LA County officials to verify mail-in ballots were NOT sent to a list of potentially thousands of noncitizens

California said "no, we're not checking"

TRUMP AND BLANCHE TOOK THEM TO COURT.

No… pic.twitter.com/LLec6uxWSV

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) October 15, 2026

The lawsuit now seeks a court order preventing those ballots from being counted until citizenship can be verified. Federal authorities say the state made no serious effort to comply with the request, leaving potentially ineligible ballots in circulation.

Ballots went out in early October to the full list of registered voters in Los Angeles County, including those the Department of Justice had identified as likely noncitizens based on federal data. The suit targets the California Secretary of State and the LA County Registrar, arguing their inaction violates federal expectations for election administration.

Without verification, ballots from the flagged group could be processed and tallied in a major population center, raising questions about the integrity of the count. The Department of Justice maintains that states must take reasonable steps to ensure only citizens participate, particularly when federal data has already raised specific red flags.

California officials characterized the federal request as politically motivated and refused to engage. The state has a history of resisting Trump administration directives on immigration enforcement and election security, and this lawsuit represents the latest flashpoint in that ongoing conflict.

The federal complaint emphasizes that collaboration between the Department of Justice and state election officials is the standard approach when noncitizen registrations are suspected. By declining to participate, California left those ballots in the system without resolution.

The court will now decide whether to grant the requested injunction halting the use of those ballots pending further checks. If the injunction is denied, the ballots could be counted in the upcoming election without any verification of citizenship status.

This case follows a Supreme Court decision in August that cleared the way for President Trump’s executive order on mail-in ballot security to move forward. That order directs the Postal Service to require states to supply lists of eligible voters 60 days ahead of federal elections.

Attorney General Todd Blanche has stated publicly that the Department of Justice stands ready to defend federal election security measures against legal challenges from states and advocacy groups. The California lawsuit puts that commitment to the test.

The 20,000 flagged registrations represent a small fraction of the total voter rolls in Los Angeles County, but the principle at stake is larger. If states can ignore federal requests to verify citizenship when specific concerns have been raised, the door remains open to ineligible participation.

California’s refusal to comply also raises procedural questions about how election integrity efforts are supposed to function when state and federal authorities disagree. The lawsuit will force a court to weigh whether California’s position is legally defensible or an abdication of responsibility.

For now, the ballots are in the mail, the count is approaching, and the federal government is asking a judge to intervene before it is too late.