Justice Department seeks dismissal of lawsuit targeting California noncitizen ballot list

The Justice Department filed a motion on Friday to dismiss its lawsuit that sought to stop California from counting roughly 20,000 ballots it alleged were cast by noncitizens until their immigration status could be verified. The request comes days after the Republican Party suffered major losses in the recent midterm elections and about a week before a hearing where a special master was to assess the accuracy of the voter list.

California officials have said the list is outdated and includes legitimate voters, a view echoed by the presiding federal judge in his order denying the government's request. The judge warned that separating ballots at this stage could disenfranchise voters and disrupt the ongoing election count.

The case was part of the Trump administration's broader effort to challenge state election processes. President Donald J. Trump has repeatedly claimed that illegal voting is widespread, though he has not provided evidence.

On the eve of Election Day, the Supreme Court rejected an emergency appeal from the Justice Department that sought to require California to separate the contested mail ballots, issuing a brief, unsigned order.

The motion to dismiss argues that, by the time of the upcoming hearing, California will have already mixed the challenged ballots with lawful ones, making the requested relief unavailable. "The relief the United States sought and needed is no longer available—rendering voluntary dismissal necessary," the filing states.

Bill Essayli, the U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California, previously told a court that the lawsuit would become moot after Election Day because processed ballots are anonymized. He said the suit was intended to "safeguard the integrity of the election so it doesn't have an effect on the upcoming election."

The Justice Department did not respond to a request for comment. Meanwhile, California prosecutors have arrested more than 30 noncitizens accused of illegal voter registration, and election clerks received subpoenas to testify before grand juries convening in November.

U.S. District Judge David O. Carter, who appointed the special master in late October, warned that separating ballots at this late stage would risk disenfranchising citizens and could "wreak havoc" on the midterm elections.