Justice Department Seeks Emergency Supreme Court Injunction for 20,000 California Ballots

The Department of Justice filed an emergency appeal with the Supreme Court on Monday, requesting a limited injunction to pause the counting of approximately 20,000 mail ballots in California. The administration argues that these ballots should be set aside until the voting status of the individuals can be verified. The filing occurs one day before the midterm elections, which will determine control of Congress.

Solicitor General D. John Sauer wrote that once California mixes the challenged ballots with lawful ones, there is no way to retrieve them. The Justice Department contends that the executive branch has a responsibility to ensure only eligible citizens cast votes. This move follows a series of legal actions by the administration aimed at identifying noncitizen voters, a group the federal government believes may be overrepresented in the disputed list.

California officials dispute the reliability of the list provided by the federal government. Attorney General Rob Bonta, a Democrat, stated that the appeal reeks of desperation and is an attempt to undermine the state's elections. Bonta noted that the list likely includes many U.S. citizens. State election leaders have also stated that finding and separating the specific ballots from the hundreds of thousands already processed is logistically impossible at this stage.

Lower federal courts have consistently ruled against the administration's efforts to intervene. Chief Judge James Boasberg ordered the administration to stop making its demands on Monday, finding that they violated the U.S. Constitution. Boasberg wrote that the executive branch likely violated the Elections Clause, which grants authority over election rules to the states and Congress.

A divided appeals court panel previously rejected the request to set aside the ballots. The 2-1 decision included votes from one judge appointed by Donald Trump and another by Joe Biden. The dissenting judge, also appointed by Trump, argued that California's refusal to separate the ballots encourages the violation of federal law.

The Supreme Court has previously rejected a similar push by the administration to restrict mail ballots ahead of the midterms. The current appeal asks the justices to step in before the votes are counted. The outcome of the case will determine whether the 20,000 disputed ballots are included in the final tally for the California congressional races.