Judge Bennett questions federal bid to void 20,000 California ballots

A federal appeals judge voiced doubt on Sunday about the Department of Justice’s lawsuit seeking to force California to discard thousands of mail-in ballots. The case, filed less than three weeks before the November 3 midterm elections, targets a list of 20,000 names the government believes belong to noncitizens. Circuit Judge Mark Bennett, an appointee of President Donald Trump, told the DOJ team that the court might struggle to grant the requested injunction.

Bennett pointed to the Elections Clause in the US Constitution during the rare weekend oral argument. He noted that this clause generally allows states, not the federal government, to set the rules for administering elections. "It seems to me that you want us to issue an injunction that is entirely inconsistent with the law that the California legislature has adopted pursuant to the Elections Clause," Bennett said to Justice Department lawyer Matthew Donnelly. He added, "How can we do that?" The three-judge panel plans to issue a decision as soon as possible.

The Justice Department filed its complaint on October 15, asking a federal court to set aside ballots sent to "likely noncitizens" in California. The suit is part of a wider administration effort to address alleged noncitizen voting before the midterms decide control of the US Congress. The administration has not publicly explained how it compiled the list of 20,000 names, a point that has drawn criticism from voting rights advocates.

California has pushed back against the federal challenge. State officials argue they have strong safeguards to prevent noncitizens from voting and that the DOJ’s claims rest on dubious data. Governor Gavin Newsom called the lawsuit a "sad, desperate attempt" to suppress voters. "We will continue to carry out free and fair elections in the Golden State," Newsom said in a statement earlier this month.

President Trump has frequently promoted the idea that noncitizens vote in large numbers, a claim critics call discredited. He specifically targeted California earlier this year after right-wing candidates performed poorly in the state’s primaries. Trump wrote on social media that there was "BIG cheating by the Dumocrats in California" and announced an investigation by the US Attorneys’ Office.

The midterm election will determine which party controls Congress, along with key state and local positions. Polls currently favor Republican candidates, though Trump’s approval ratings have declined amid dissatisfaction over the cost of living and the US-Israel war on Iran. Whistleblower reports have also cast doubt on the accuracy of similar noncitizen voter lists used by the administration in the past.

The legal dispute highlights the tension between federal enforcement power and state authority over elections. The outcome of the appeals court decision could set a precedent for how federal challenges to state ballot counts are handled in future cycles. For now, the focus remains on the 20,000 names at the center of the DOJ’s claim.