Judge Carter Rejects DOJ Ballot Bid

What happened

Updated Oct 28, 9:09pm ET

U.S. District Judge David O. Carter denied the Justice Department’s request to stop California from processing or counting ballots linked to alleged noncitizens. The department sued California on Oct. 15, after voting had begun, seeking to set aside mail ballots tied to more than 20,000 people it said were likely noncitizens. The department said it was protecting lawful votes from dilution. California and Los Angeles County said the list was unreliable and could wrongly disenfranchise eligible voters. Carter said the verification method was too uncertain and could disrupt an ongoing election. He said illegal voting could be prosecuted later. The Justice Department indicated it might appeal.

How the left told it

Left-leaning outlets cast the ruling as a check on a late federal intervention that risked chaos and state election control. The Guardian framed the request as legally thin and aimed at casting doubt on the midterm results. The Los Angeles Times highlighted state and county lawyers saying the government had no reliable evidence the voters were noncitizens. TPM lingered on federal prosecution threats against election workers.

How the right told it

Right-leaning outlets focused on the government’s push to protect lawful votes, while faulting resistance to emergency enforcement. Breitbart News emphasized Bill Essayli’s argument that illegal votes dilute legal ones. RedState portrayed Carter as equating noncitizen-voting enforcement with historic voter suppression. The Epoch Times highlighted Carter’s concern that the request could confuse legitimate voters during an active election.