The U.S. Justice Department has subpoenaed employees of the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder as part of a sweeping effort to crack down on suspected noncitizen voting in California. The Associated Press obtained copies of three subpoenas, sent October 21 and October 24, ordering those employees to appear in court on November 4, the day after the election.
The subpoenas demand records and communications related to letters federal officials sent in July and October outlining allegations of noncitizens on California’s voter rolls. They also seek information on the office’s methods for screening out illegal votes cast by foreign nationals, and anything related to efforts to stop those votes from being counted. According to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity, all four U.S. attorneys in California are issuing subpoenas.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli already put California election officials on notice, warning that “any election official who knowingly processes the ballot of a noncitizen is opening themselves to legal jeopardy.” Meanwhile, DOJ noncitizen voter investigation has drawn a sharp response from LA County Registrar Dean Logan, who declared that “threats and intimidation have no place in elections.” Great line, Dean. Very reassuring coming from a guy whose office is now under federal subpoena.
The Trump administration has sued to force California to set aside up to 20,000 ballots it suspects went to noncitizens, holding them until citizenship can be verified. U.S. District Judge David O. Carter, a Bill Clinton appointee, rejected that request Tuesday, but then Thursday appointed a special master, Daniel B. Garrie, to evaluate the administration’s claims and develop “the factual record” for the court. Carter is also entertaining California’s argument that it logistically cannot separate the ballots before the December 3 certification deadline, which the federal government disputes.
Both sides have actually agreed that an unspecified number of U.S. citizens ended up on the DOJ’s list of over 20,000 alleged noncitizen voters. Carter cited that as a reason setting aside the ballots would risk disenfranchising legitimate voters and “wreak havoc” on certification. Over 500,000 votes have already been processed in Los Angeles County alone, and once a vote is processed the system cannot trace it back to the individual voter.
President Trump did not mince words Thursday morning before heading to a campaign rally in South Carolina. “California is very corrupt. The elections are extremely corrupt. The judge should not have done that but we’ll appeal that, of course,” he told reporters. Trump also said there are “millions, in my opinion” of “bad ballots” in California, a claim he made without providing evidence.
The Justice Department wasted no time filing with the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, calling for a fast ruling because of “irreversible ballot processing occurring on an ongoing basis.” This is actually the second trip to the 9th Circuit for this case. The first time, two of the three panel judges made clear they would not support setting aside ballots this close to the election, questioning the accuracy of the federal government’s list. One judge dissented, arguing that federal law bars noncitizen voting and that failing to vet the ballots before counting them would cause irreparable harm.
Judge Carter is expected to rule on the government’s renewed request for a preliminary injunction after a November 13 evidentiary hearing that will include input from the special master. Federal authorities have already charged over two dozen foreign nationals in California as part of a statewide sweep targeting people alleged to have illegally registered or voted.
So to recap: the DOJ is subpoenaing California officials, a special master is now on the job, the 9th Circuit is getting another crack at it, and California’s defense is essentially “we’re too busy to check.” Stay tuned, because the only thing moving faster than California’s ballot processing is its lawyers’ billable hours.
