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The U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) on Monday rejected a Trump administration request to temporarily block lower-court rulings that denied requests to segregate more than 20,000 California mail-in ballots cast by people it says are likely not U.S. citizens.
Justice Elena Kagan denied the appeal on the eve of the midterm elections without comment, and did not refer it to the other justices.
The administration argued that the limited injunction would preserve the ballots while their eligibility is investigated, without canceling any votes. California and the federal government dispute whether the ballots are unlawful.
“Once illegally cast ballots are counted and commingled with lawful votes, the resulting harm is impossible to remedy,” the Department of Justice (DOJ) wrote in a court filing.
JUDGE REJECTS DOJ REQUEST TO BLOCK CALIFORNIA FROM IMMEDIATELY COUNTING BALLOTS LINKED TO ALLEGED NONCITIZENS
California has a heavy Democratic registered voter edge over Republicans and has the highest representation in the House with 52 seats, mostly Democratic. (Christina House/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images; Emily Elconin/Reuters)
The SCOTUS appeal came about after the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the request Friday, with Judge Patrick Bumatay dissenting, as did a federal judge in Los Angeles last week.
The DOJ sought relief while the matter proceeds. California says its safeguards against noncitizen voting are robust and argues the federal list may contain errors that could disenfranchise eligible voters.
The lower courts also cited the state’s authority over election procedures and warned that granting the request could jeopardize the election.
On Monday evening, a federal judge in Washington, D.C., said it was “likely” the Trump administration violated the Constitution by taking over responsibilities for elections from the states and Congress.
Chief Judge James Boasberg issued an injunction blocking the administration from making requests from California over its mail-in ballots.
DOJ HAS VERIFIED 20,000 NONCITIZENS ON CALIFORNIA VOTER ROLLS, FEDERAL PROSECUTOR SAYS
The case stems from an Oct. 15 DOJ lawsuit alleging that California is impeding enforcement of a federal law barring noncitizens from voting in federal elections.
The administration says the state violated the Constitution’s Supremacy Clause, which generally gives federal law precedence over state law.
The dispute comes amid the administration’s broader push to influence how states run elections, including demands for access to voter rolls and warnings that officials could face prosecution for knowingly allowing noncitizens to vote.
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California, the nation’s most populous state, has 52 House seats. Democrats need a net gain of four seats to take control of the chamber.
Fox News’ Shannon Bream and Bill Mears and Reuters contributed to this report.