California’s ballots, DOJ’s guess list, and the Ninth Circuit’s raised eyebrows.
On Sunday, October 25, a Ninth Circuit panel questioned the timing, legal authority, and constitutional footing of the Justice Department’s push to make California hold aside mail ballots from roughly 20,000 voters the government says are “likely” noncitizens. Two judges appeared skeptical during the emergency appeal, because apparently the new election-administration strategy is to toss a lit cigarette into the roast-beef fryer and call it quality control. Associated Press reporting
The federal government’s October 15 complaint seeks an order requiring California and Los Angeles County to segregate ballots tied to its list and verify citizenship before tabulation. That is the government’s ask—not a court finding that the listed people are ineligible. DOJ complaint
Los Angeles County’s preliminary review of 200 entries, according to AP, found canceled or inactive registrations, people with no voting history, and people who appeared to have been born in the United States. County counsel told the appeals panel that sorting through the expected 2.75 million mail ballots against the federal list could take about 140,000 staff-hours. That’s roughly 16 years of work, which is one way to make election night last until the nonexistent Winchester McDonald’s finally opens. Associated Press reporting
The panel had not issued a ruling as of the AP report. The lower-court hearing was scheduled for Tuesday, October 27. So, for now: federal officials have a sweeping demand, California has a list it says is unreliable, and the court has questions. A real Michelob-of-a-process—flat, warm, and somehow still being served.
Sources
- https://apnews.com/article/15f4270b4c43b088a633c8fcc365d027
- https://www.justice.gov/opa/media/1466286/dl
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Featured image: James R Browning Courthouse Courtroom 1 Wall.JPG by Sam Wheeler, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
