California Election Unions Sue Justice Department Over 20,000 Challenged Ballots
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Oct 30
California Election Unions Sue Justice Department Over 20,000 Challenged Ballots
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Oct 30
Summary
California election-worker unions asked a federal judge Friday to block the Justice Department from pressuring local officials, halting ballot counts or threatening criminal charges days before Tuesday’s midterms.
The suit followed a burst of federal action: grand jury subpoenas to local election officials on Thursday and a failed administration bid a day earlier to stop California from counting about 20,000 ballots.
Union lawyers said the department’s campaign rests on flawed Homeland Security voter data and unsubstantiated claims that thousands of noncitizens are on California’s rolls, even though such fraud is rare.
The Justice Department says it is acting in good faith to ensure lawful voting, but the lawsuit casts the effort as an unprecedented federal intrusion into state election administration.
The clash underscores the Trump administration’s broader late-campaign turn to courts and investigations as Republicans face unexpectedly tight races in several traditionally red states.