California leaders rebuke Trump administration’s push over alleged noncitizen voting
Election personnel concerned directive to ‘quickly’ verify 20,000 ballots could disenfranchise citizens California’s top leaders have rebuked the Trump administration’s efforts to quash alleged noncitizen voting. Less than two weeks before the midterms, federal prosecutors called upon California election officials to verify within 48 hours a list of about 20,000 ballots belonging to suspected…
California leaders have criticized the Trump administration's directive to verify the citizenship status of nearly 20,000 ballots, which could potentially disenfranchise American citizens. Federal prosecutors asked California election officials to verify the list within 48 hours. Los Angeles officials stated that a "high percentage" of those on the list were born in the United States.
Governor Gavin Newsom accused the Justice Department of desperation to "invent 'widespread voter fraud'" and posted about the situation on social media. Congressman Pete Aguilar also condemned the administration, saying "voter intimidation has no place in our democracy." The DOJ's efforts come amid a national Republican movement to combat alleged voter fraud, especially among undocumented immigrants.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta questioned the evidence provided by the DOJ, stating that they only received a list of people without any justification for their ineligibility. The DOJ also arrested 28 foreign nationals for allegedly registering to vote fraudulently. Some state officials have taken no action due to the upcoming election, leading to a legal dispute with the Justice Department. The appeals court is scheduled to hear the case on Tuesday.
Written by urgent.news from The Guardian US's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
