A federal judge has ordered the Justice Department to stop threatening and intimidating state and local election officials who do not comply with the Trump administration's demands regarding voting by alleged non-citizens. The sweeping order prohibits the federal government from demanding that officials separate ballots and from threatening criminal prosecution for noncompliance.
The administration has alleged that California sent ballots to more than 20,000 people who may not be U.S. citizens. It demanded that the state set those ballots aside and not count them until citizenship can be verified.
However, a federal appeals court rejected the administration's bid to force California to set aside these ballots and its request to temporarily block the state from counting mail ballots from these registered voters. This follows a federal judge calling into question the process the Trump administration used to identify the alleged non-citizens.
These judicial actions come amid pressure tactics used by the administration in the weeks leading up to the midterm elections.