Trump DOJ Targets 405 Ballots. Some May Belong to U.S. Citizens
Summary
The Justice Department asked Washington state to hold aside ballots cast by 405 people it alleges were noncitizens, while acknowledging some may have since become U.S. citizens. Three civic and labor groups asked a federal judge in Seattle to block the request, arguing that the administration lacks authority to direct the state’s ballot-counting process and that the demand could threaten lawful voters and election workers.Key Facts
- A DOJ letter dated October 26 asked Washington officials to review 405 names and said the people had cast more than 1,500 ballots.
- The letter said people on the list “are or were noncitizens” and acknowledged that some may have naturalized since then.
- The DOJ asked county officials not to verify or count a listed person’s ballot until the person’s citizenship was settled.
- The letter gave Washington 24 hours to check the names and a noon October 28 deadline to respond, and warned that the federal government could seek emergency court action.
- Three civic and labor groups filed a lawsuit Friday and sought an emergency order from a federal judge in Seattle on Monday, the day before Election Day.
- The groups argued that federal records can fail to reflect later naturalization and that Washington’s elections office has said the federal system used by the DOJ often flags U.S. citizens.
- The article says the DOJ also sought to segregate ballots from more than 20,000 people in California and tried to block certification of an Alaska Senate race; courts rejected both efforts.
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