Court Halts DOJ Attempt to Disenfranchise California Voters Ahead of Midterms
October 28, 2026
LOS ANGELES — A federal court has rejected the U.S. Department of Justice’s attempt to disenfranchise over 20,000 California voters ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. This comes as several pro-voting organizations — League of United Latin American Citizens and the NAACP, NAACP California/Hawaii State Conference, and NAACP Los Angeles Branch — intervened in the case. The pro-voting coalition is represented by Campaign Legal Center, Democracy Defenders Fund, the NAACP Office of General Counsel, and Altshuler Berzon LLP.
On Oct. 13, 2026, the DOJ sent a letter to the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk and California Secretary of State Shirley Weber demanding that they separate and refuse to count over 20,000 Californians’ ballots, based on a list of allegedly ineligible voters that the federal government constructed using methods they refused to disclose to state and local election officials.
After demanding a 48-hour timeline for compliance, the DOJ sued to force the issue. Immediately, our pro-voter coalition filed a motion to intervene in this case in order to protect Californians’ freedom to vote in the midterm elections, which are already underway in the lead-up to Election Day on Nov. 3. The ruling today comes after a Ninth Circuit panel heard arguments over the weekend in the case, and rejected the DOJ’s attempt to circumvent the normal legal process and bypass the district court.
“The DOJ’s lawsuit against California was an attempt to silence voters and reject election results that this administration does not like,” said Tianna Mays, legal director of Democracy Defenders Fund. “Days before Election Day, the administration was asking the court to stop California from counting legitimate ballots based on a list it cannot defend. As in this case, these continued efforts to target voters will not go unchallenged. We will defend every legitimate ballot.”
“By denying this temporary restraining order, the court has affirmed what the Constitution has already made clear: The states and Congress oversee our elections, not the White House and not the Department of Justice. With this ruling, the court has prevented the voices of 20,000 registered California voters from being silenced,” said Anna Baldwin, director of voting rights litigation at Campaign Legal Center. “This was just the most recent attempt by the DOJ to inject eleventh-hour chaos into the midterm elections and prevent voters from having their voices heard. At Campaign Legal Center, we are glad to see this effort fail, and we will continue to do everything in our power to ensure every eligible American can cast a ballot and have their vote counted.”
“The Department of Justice tried to discard thousands of ballots based on a list it refused to explain, and the court rightly refused to go along,” said Roman Palomares, national president and chairman of the board of LULAC. “For nearly a century, LULAC has stood against every scheme to keep Latino voters from the ballot box. We will defend every eligible Californian’s right to vote and to have that vote counted.”
“This ruling is an important victory in our effort to stop the Trump administration from its lawless attempts to hijack the 2026 midterm election process,” said Kristen Clarke, general counsel of the NAACP. “This Justice Department sought to impose its will on California officials in the middle of an election cycle by using a system even they concede is flawed and error-prone. Federal law prohibits these voter suppression schemes that disenfranchise voters and will cause chaos in the final weeks of this election. Black and Latino voters remain the prime targets of this administration’s multi-state campaign to silence voters by challenging ballots, threatening officials, and intimidating voters — we will not stand by idly. We will continue to hold this administration accountable and clear the path to the ballot box for all voters this season.”
“The law is clear and the courts have been decisive and swift in rejecting this attempt to interfere with California’s elections, already underway,” said Danielle Leonard, Altshuler Berzon LLP. “The Trump administration needs to keep its hands off our democratic process, as the Constitution and federal law demand.”
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Democracy Defenders Fund brings together a nonpartisan team to work with national, state and local allies across the country to defend in real-time the foundations of our democracy.
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