Trump administration brings California ballot fight to Supreme Court
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The Trump administration on Monday brought its demand that California separate 20,000 mail ballots it says belong to likely noncitizens to the Supreme Court, thrusting the justices back into the center of the midterm campaign one day before Election Day.
Lower courts have ruled the list isn’t credible and the Trump administration has no authority to force the state to verify those voters’ citizenship, saying it would cause chaos if officials were to oblige.
“That doomsday prediction ignores that segregating ballots is a routine remedy when the lawfulness of ballots is questioned,” Solicitor General D. John Sauer wrote to the Supreme Court.
The fight over the 20,000 California ballots has rapidly escalated as Election Day approaches, as all sides agree they can’t be segregated once they’re processed. Hundreds of thousands of ballots have already been returned across the state, court filings show.
“If the United States is correct, and the individuals it has identified (or even some of those individuals) turn out to be aliens who are unlawfully voting in California, then the United States will suffer irreparable harm from the commingling of their ballots with lawful votes,” Sauer wrote.
Democrats and immigration groups have questioned the list’s veracity and warned the lawsuit is laying the groundwork to disenfranchise voters.
California says it’s not feasible to verify voters’ citizenship so late in the election cycle, and the state criticized the administration for refusing to say who supplied the list.
Lower courts have sided with the state as the Trump administration has raced for a judicial intervention. As it continues appealing, the administration has also sent subpoenas to local election officials and announced criminal charges against alleged noncitizens who’ve tried to register to vote.
The battle reached the Supreme Court after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit sided against the administration in a 2-1 vote on Friday, saying segregating the ballots would have “potentially catastrophic effects on the entire system.”
The Trump administration’s Supreme Court appeal heads to Justice Elena Kagan, who by default handles emergency matters arising from California. Kagan has not yet announced a deadline for California to respond. She could act on the request alone or refer it to the full court for a vote.
Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Read the full story at Axios ↗ · The Hill ↗
The Trump administration on Monday brought its demand that California separate 20,000 mail ballots it says belong to likely noncitizens to the Supreme Court, thrusting the…
This lens runs the verified story through Cinnamon's AI — wired in the next step.
Skip to content
The Trump administration on Monday brought its demand that California separate 20,000 mail ballots it says belong to likely noncitizens to the Supreme Court, thrusting the justices back into the center of the midterm campaign one day before Election Day.
Lower courts have ruled the list isn’t credible and the Trump administration has no authority to force the state to verify those voters’ citizenship, saying it would cause chaos if officials were to oblige.
“That doomsday prediction ignores that segregating ballots is a routine remedy when the lawfulness of ballots is questioned,” Solicitor General D. John Sauer wrote to the Supreme Court.
The fight over the 20,000 California ballots has rapidly escalated as Election Day approaches, as all sides agree they can’t be segregated once they’re processed. Hundreds of thousands of ballots have already been returned across the state, court filings show.
“If the United States is correct, and the individuals it has identified (or even some of those individuals) turn out to be aliens who are unlawfully voting in California, then the United States will suffer irreparable harm from the commingling of their ballots with lawful votes,” Sauer wrote.
Democrats and immigration groups have questioned the list’s veracity and warned the lawsuit is laying the groundwork to disenfranchise voters.
California says it’s not feasible to verify voters’ citizenship so late in the election cycle, and the state criticized the administration for refusing to say who supplied the list.
Lower courts have sided with the state as the Trump administration has raced for a judicial intervention. As it continues appealing, the administration has also sent subpoenas to local election officials and announced criminal charges against alleged noncitizens who’ve tried to register to vote.
The battle reached the Supreme Court after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit sided against the administration in a 2-1 vote on Friday, saying segregating the ballots would have “potentially catastrophic effects on the entire system.”
The Trump administration’s Supreme Court appeal heads to Justice Elena Kagan, who by default handles emergency matters arising from California. Kagan has not yet announced a deadline for California to respond. She could act on the request alone or refer it to the full court for a vote.
Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Read the full story at Axios ↗ · The Hill ↗
Skip to content
The Trump administration on Monday brought its demand that California separate 20,000 mail ballots it says belong to likely noncitizens to the Supreme Court, thrusting the justices back into the center of the midterm campaign one day before Election Day.
Lower courts have ruled the list isn’t credible and the Trump administration has no authority to force the state to verify those voters’ citizenship, saying it would cause chaos if officials were to oblige.
“That doomsday prediction ignores that segregating ballots is a routine remedy when the lawfulness of ballots is questioned,” Solicitor General D. John Sauer wrote to the Supreme Court.
The fight over the 20,000 California ballots has rapidly escalated as Election Day approaches, as all sides agree they can’t be segregated once they’re processed. Hundreds of thousands of ballots have already been returned across the state, court filings show.
“If the United States is correct, and the individuals it has identified (or even some of those individuals) turn out to be aliens who are unlawfully voting in California, then the United States will suffer irreparable harm from the commingling of their ballots with lawful votes,” Sauer wrote.
Democrats and immigration groups have questioned the list’s veracity and warned the lawsuit is laying the groundwork to disenfranchise voters.
California says it’s not feasible to verify voters’ citizenship so late in the election cycle, and the state criticized the administration for refusing to say who supplied the list.
Lower courts have sided with the state as the Trump administration has raced for a judicial intervention. As it continues appealing, the administration has also sent subpoenas to local election officials and announced criminal charges against alleged noncitizens who’ve tried to register to vote.
The battle reached the Supreme Court after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit sided against the administration in a 2-1 vote on Friday, saying segregating the ballots would have “potentially catastrophic effects on the entire system.”
The Trump administration’s Supreme Court appeal heads to Justice Elena Kagan, who by default handles emergency matters arising from California. Kagan has not yet announced a deadline for California to respond. She could act on the request alone or refer it to the full court for a vote.
Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Read the full story at Axios ↗ · The Hill ↗
This lens runs the verified story through Cinnamon's AI — wired in the next step.
- The Trump administration on Monday brought its demand that California separate 20,000 mail ballots it says belong to likely noncitizens to the Supreme Court, thrusting the…