DOJ dropping suit over alleged noncitizen ballots

The Justice Department has abandoned its attempt to keep California from tallying about 20,000 ballots it claimed came from noncitizens. Lawyers filed a motion Friday to drop the case, conceding that the remedy they wanted can no longer be delivered, since the state has mixed the disputed ballots in with valid ones. CBS News · MS NOW reports the retreat follows Republican setbacks in the midterms and comes about a week ahead of a hearing at which a court-appointed special master was to test the list's reliability.

The suit was a centerpiece of the Trump administration's push to exert more control over state-run elections. Judge David O. Carter, a Clinton appointee, had refused the government's request, warning that separating ballots late in the process could disenfranchise citizens. California officials maintain that the list is stale and includes eligible voters. The Supreme Court turned away an emergency appeal on Monday with an unsigned order.

Litigation continues with immigrant and voting rights groups over the list's use, and an appeal of a dismissed Alaska Senate-race suit is pending. California prosecutors have also arrested more than 30 noncitizens accused of unlawful registration.

Summarized by PolitiKool from CBS News · MS NOW’s reporting. Read the full story at CBS News · MS NOW →