Appeals court hears Justice Department bid to make California set aside some mail ballots

A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, with two Trump appointees and one Biden appointee, held a rare Sunday hearing on the Justice Department's request to make California set aside mail ballots sent to people it identifies as suspected noncitizens. Reuters reports two of the three judges sharply questioned a Justice Department lawyer. No ruling was reported. The department says about 20,000 people on its list received mail ballots. California officials say the list is unverified and includes lawful voters.

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Why it matters

The case concerns mail ballots in California's November 3 election, which counties are already processing; Los Angeles County alone had processed 331,000 ballots, according to court records cited by Fox News. The Justice Department says ballots from about 20,000 flagged people should be held aside, while California officials say the list includes lawful voters.

What to watch

A hearing before U.S. District Judge David Carter in the underlying lawsuit is scheduled for Tuesday, October 27.

How each side sees it

The Justice Department saysAbout 20,000 people it flagged as likely noncitizens received mail ballots, and they must be set aside while eligibility is reviewed; it says counting them harms citizens' votes and called the request "an emergency."

California officials sayThe list is unverified and includes lawful voters; a Los Angeles County review of 200 names found nearly 4 in 10 were born in the U.S. They say counties lack access to federal records and cannot separate ballots once processed.

Sources

Checked against 4 established news sources:

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Published Sunday, October 25, 2026. Spot an error? Email [email protected]. See our corrections log and standards.