California's Governor Asks Federal Judges to Resist Any Trump Administration Move to Seize Ballots, Reuters Reports
Gavin Newsom's warning letter lands two days before the midterms, after an appeals court rejected the administration's bid in California's noncitizen-voting investigation and a judge ordered the Justice Department to stop threatening election officials.
California Governor Gavin Newsom on Saturday warned federal courts to be ready for potential attempts by President Donald Trump's administration to seize ballots during the upcoming midterm elections, Reuters reported.
Newsom, a Democrat, sent the warning letter to federal judges as California's legal fight with the administration escalates. The administration has demanded records from the state as part of a criminal investigation into noncitizen voting. On Friday, a U.S. appeals court rejected the administration's bid, potentially setting up a showdown at the U.S. Supreme Court. Separately, a federal judge ordered the Justice Department to stop threatening to prosecute state and local election officials in California who refuse to comply with the administration's election-related demands.
'Given the United States Department of Justice's persistence in advancing this baseless theory of criminal liability, I have grave concerns federal agents will seek search warrants to seize ballots and ballot materials before the election results are certified,' Newsom wrote, adding that the only reason to use such warrants would be to interfere in the state's lawful counting and certification. The Constitution assigns election administration to the states, but the administration has alleged that more than 20,000 noncitizens are registered to vote in California — a list the state and many experts have questioned, and the Justice Department has not said how many of those people actually submitted ballots. California says the assertions relied on 'suspect data' and that complying would risk disenfranchising eligible voters.
