WASHINGTON — The Justice Department is threatening legal action against California unless state and local officials review a list of potential noncitizens on their voter rolls.Acting Deputy Attorney General R.Trent McCotter sent letters to California Secretary of State Shirley Weber and Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder Dean Logan on Tuesday demanding that they review a list of possible noncitizens the federal government identified by noon on Thursday.“Allowing noncitizens to vote cancels citizen votes,” McCotter wrote in letter, which was obtained by NBC News.
“States are responsible for voter registration, and the Federal Government is responsible for maintaining immigration records to enable verification of citizenship.Working together, we can more effectively protect against voter dilution and promote election integrity.”McCotter wrote that they provided a password-protected thumb drive with a list of individuals the federal government “believes are likely noncitizens who were sent a vote-by-mail ballot” for the 2026 election.
He asked that election officials “segregate — not cancel — those individuals’ vote-by-mail ballots” until their citizenship status was determined.“The Department of Justice sent letters to California election officials demanding immediate action to ensure that noncitizens who automatically received ballots per California law do not vote in the upcoming federal election,” a Justice Department spokesperson said in a statement.“This should not be controversial, as the criminal statute is clear: only American citizens may vote in federal elections.
It is a federal crime for noncitizens to vote in U.S.elections, and the DOJ is asking California to ensure that is not occurring.”Reuters first reported on the letters.
Weber and Logan did not immediately respond to requests for comment.All registered voters in California receive mail-in ballots, which started going out on Oct.5.
The legal threats came amid a...