The Justice Department on Friday put California on notice and vowed to prosecute election officials who tabulate unlawful ballots.
“California on Notice: Federal agencies identified over 20,000 suspected noncitizens registered to vote in California who have already been mailed ballots,” First Assistant US Attorney Bill Essayli said on Friday.
“Under 18 U.S.C. §§ 611 and 2, officials who knowingly tabulate unlawful ballots risk aiding and abetting a federal offense. The Justice Department urges the County and the Secretary of State to temporarily segregate the flagged ballots pending citizenship verification or face legal consequences,” Bill Essayli said.
California on Notice: Federal agencies identified over 20,000 suspected noncitizens registered to vote in California who have already been mailed ballots. Under 18 U.S.C. §§ 611 and 2, officials who knowingly tabulate unlawful ballots risk aiding and abetting a federal offense. @TheJusticeDept urges the County and the Secretary of State to temporarily segregate the flagged ballots pending citizenship verification or face legal consequences.
— F.A. United States Attorney Bill Essayli (@USAttyEssayli) October 16, 2026
Later Friday, President Trump vowed to jail the lawbreakers: “They will all go to jail for a long period of time!!!”
On Thursday, the DOJ filed a federal lawsuit requiring California to sequester the ballots.
The Justice Department had given California exactly a 48-hour window or face emergency legal action.
That deadline has now passed. The lawsuit followed.
The federal lawsuit, filed in the Central District of California on October 15, requests an order preventing the tabulation of ballots belonging to individuals identified as likely noncitizens until their citizenship can be determined.
Under California law, registered active voters are automatically mailed ballots. That practice has become central to the DOJ’s concerns about individuals who may be improperly registered.
The Justice Department said Homeland Security Investigations and federal partners examined voter-registration records and conducted additional verification work to identify potential noncitizens.
