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DOJ appeals to Supreme Court to reverse block on segregating 20K California ballots
The US Supreme Court rejected the Trump administration’s request to temporarily block lower-court rulings that let California proceed with counting more than 20,000 mail-in ballots. The decision leaves the ballots in the count while a legal dispute continues over whether voters identified by federal authorities are eligible, with both sides arguing that election integrity and voters’ rights are at stake.
The Justice Department said separating the ballots would preserve them without cancelling votes, and warned that mixing unlawful ballots with valid ones would be impossible to remedy. California says federal records may be wrong and could exclude eligible voters; lower courts also pointed to state authority over elections and risks to the process. The case follows an October 15 federal lawsuit, and a separate Washington judge on Monday said the administration had likely overstepped by taking on election responsibilities assigned to states and Congress.
In short
- Supreme Court declines to isolate 20,000 California ballots.
- The eligibility dispute continues in court.
- California warns federal records could wrongly flag voters.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
The Justice Department’s strongest case is that temporarily segregating the disputed ballots would preserve them without cancelling anyone’s vote, while allowing courts to resolve eligibility before the ballots are mixed into the count. If some ballots are unlawful, keeping them identifiable could make it possible to address that problem later and protect confidence in the election process.
The case against
California’s strongest case is that federal records may wrongly identify eligible voters, so setting these ballots aside could disenfranchise people whose eligibility is valid under state rules. State officials also argue that election administration belongs to state authorities and that federal intervention risks disrupting the counting process and voters’ rights.
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