The Trump administration has dismissed its lawsuit that sought to prevent California from counting some 20,000 ballots the federal government said were mailed to potential noncitizens, saying the election is too far gone at this point.
The Justice Department dropped the case after a string of losses in the courts, including a summary rejection by the Supreme Court.
President Trump had wanted California to separate out the 20,000 ballots when they were returned by voters, either by mail or drop box, and to keep them uncounted until the citizenship of the voter could be determined.
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Courts questioned the method Homeland Security used to identify the 20,000 names, saying it had a large number of errors — U.S. citizens who were flagged. The judges also said it’s up to California to decide how strictly it wants to screen its voter pool to weed out noncitizens.
The state runs an all-mail election, which means a ballot is mailed to every registered voter. People can mail it back, drop it off at a drop box or voting center, or still show up to vote in person.
The courts involved so far refused DOJ’s demand for an immediate order to segregate the ballots but had not issued any final judgment in the case.
But Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie A. Hamill said by the time District Judge David Carter next heard a hearing, on Friday, it would be too late.
“There is then no way to get the challenged ballots segregated. As a result, the relief the United States sought and needed is no longer available—rendering voluntary dismissal necessary because there is no longer Article III jurisdiction,” she wrote.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta said the Trump administration canceled the case because it was afraid of having to defend its shoddy work in identifying the supposed noncitizens.
“Rather than face that scrutiny, it chose to drop its case,” he said. “After four court defeats in just one week, including at the U.S. Supreme Court, the federal government has now thrown in the towel.”
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