The US Department of Justice is expected to continue its efforts to identify and prosecute noncitizen voting, despite recent court setbacks. In the weeks leading up to Election Day, the Trump administration escalated its hunt for voter fraud and pressured election officials, particularly in California, to crack down on illegal voting by non-US citizens.
Federal prosecutors have announced criminal charges against dozens of people accused of voting or registering to vote without being US citizens. However, noncitizen voting is exceptionally rare compared to overall voter numbers. The administration has touted inflated numbers of noncitizens on state voter rolls, including 20,000 "likely" noncitizens on California's voter rolls in mid-October.
The Department of Justice sued California to force election officials not to count ballots of voters whose citizenship had not been verified, but a federal judge and appeals court rejected the request, and the US Supreme Court declined to intervene. Despite dropping its lawsuit, the DOJ has not rescinded grand jury subpoenas sent to several counties in California, requesting records related to their response to DOJ demands.
US Attorney General Todd Blanche stated that the DOJ will continue to investigate election integrity cases criminally and civilly, regardless of the election results. However, recent court rulings have created obstacles for future federal attempts to intervene in state voter list maintenance. A federal judge in Washington, DC, ruled that the DOJ and Department of Homeland Security lack statutory authority to distribute lists of purported noncitizens to election officials.
The judge's order also found that taking such action violates the Privacy Act, and the federal government is expected to appeal. Another judge in October vacated the DOJ's project of requesting unredacted voter rolls from states and instructing them to remove suspected noncitizens, citing unlawful actions that disenfranchised eligible voters.
Local prosecutors, including San Luis Obispo District Attorney Dan Dow, are investigating potential noncitizen voters flagged by federal officials. Dow has charged one individual so far. Loyola Law School professor Justin Levitt expects a "trickle of actual follow-through on actual cases" of noncitizens voting, consistent with historical patterns of rare occurrences.
The DOJ's actions have raised concerns about intimidation tactics toward election officials. Santa Clara County executive James Williams declined to comment on subpoenas but expressed hope for productive collaboration with the federal government to facilitate every citizen's right to vote while ensuring accurate voter rolls.
Key points
- The US Department of Justice will continue investigating noncitizen voting cases despite recent court setbacks.
- Noncitizen voting is exceptionally rare compared to overall voter numbers.
- Court rulings have created obstacles for future federal attempts to intervene in state voter list maintenance.
