Vor den Midterms: Schlappe für Trump im Streit um 20.000 Wähler in Kalifornien

In a pre-midterm legal dispute, President Donald Trump's administration suffered a setback over 20,000 voters in the democratic state of California. The Justice Department suspected California of allowing around 20,000 individuals to vote who were not in fact U.S. citizens. A judge dismissed the request for an injunction and argued that the move would have "devastating consequences" for the integrity of the election.

The administration claimed it had never before attempted to strip states of rights in such a manner just before their own elections. Elections in the U.S. are largely under the purview of the states themselves. The administration made several attempts against California in the preceding weeks. Its goal was to ensure that absentee ballots from individuals suspected of being ineligible to vote are kept separate and do not count in recounting until the identity is clarified.

California was accused of knowingly allowing non-U.S. citizens to vote. When California failed to comply, the Justice Department took the case to court. According to court documents, the U.S. Homeland Security Department had warned California in July that over 190,000 non-citizens were registered as voters. The state then inquired about the basis of this claim, as they had not yet shared a voter list with the department.

The department, however, did not respond to the request. The judge ruled that the erosion of trust in democracy was irreparable. Once a vote is disallowed, "lasting damage has been done." Most importantly, the judge warned, executive action taken on unproven allegations could undermine democracy. The Trump administration continues to sow doubt about the legitimacy of U.S. elections.

Trump himself has claimed to have won the 2020 presidential election against Democratic candidate Joe Biden, a claim repeatedly debunked. The administration attempted to tighten absentee voting rules before the elections, but failed before the Supreme Court. Critics alleged Trump hoped to make absentee voting more difficult, thereby disadvantaging the Democratic Party whose supporters traditionally favor absentee voting.