Trump administration threatens California officials if noncitizens vote in midterms

The Trump administration has stepped up its confrontation with California before the November midterms, cautioning local election workers that processing ballots from people the federal government considers noncitizens could expose them to criminal investigation and possible prosecution. A Friday letter from Trent McCotter, acting deputy attorney general, went to the Los Angeles county counsel's office, with copies to Secretary of State Shirley Weber and county registrar Dean Logan, which in practice served notice on the whole state. McCotter wrote that anyone who knowingly counts such ballots risks being treated as an accomplice to a federal crime, according to The Guardian.

The warning came one day after the Justice Department sued to stop California from counting mail-in ballots from people it labels likely noncitizens until their status is verified. The suit followed the state's failure to examine, within 48 hours, a password-protected thumb drive listing 20,000 names. Weber said the administration has offered no proof that these people are noncitizens. California sends ballots to every registered voter.

Rick Hasen, a UCLA law professor, said the letter raises the stakes by bringing in the threat of criminal charges. He called the federal demands unreasonable and beyond its authority, arriving in the middle of an election.

Summarized by PolitiKool from The Guardian’s reporting. Read the full story at The Guardian →