Supreme Court rejects Trump's push to invalidate more than 20,000 California ballots

On the eve of the US midterm elections, the Supreme Court swiftly rejected a request by President Donald Trump's administration to temporarily block California from counting mail-in ballots from over 20,000 registered voters who federal officials suspect are likely non-US citizens. The court's one-sentence order did not offer an explanation, as is customary for emergency matters.

No justice publicly dissented from the decision. The ruling effectively halted the administration's claims regarding disputed ballots that could have impacted thousands of voters and introduced uncertainty into election outcomes. This setback for Trump came as his fellow Republicans strive to maintain control of Congress in the upcoming midterms.

California, as the most populous US state and a Democratic stronghold, is particularly significant in this context. The administration's focus on alleged noncitizen voting intensified ahead of the midterms, with multiple studies and state audits indicating that such voting, including by noncitizens, is infrequent.