UPDATE (11/2, 6:55 pm ET): The Supreme Court rejected the Trump administration's emergency request on Monday (November 2), declining to require California to set aside the disputed ballots while voters' citizenship status was reviewed, according to The Associated Press. The justices did not explain their decision, and none publicly dissented.
The Trump administration is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to temporarily set aside ballots from more than 20,000 California voters it suspects may not be U.S. citizens, escalating a legal battle over voting rights one day before the 2026 midterm elections.
According to The Washington Post, the Justice Department filed an emergency appeal on Monday (November 2), asking the high court to intervene after lower courts rejected its efforts to prevent California from counting the disputed ballots.
Federal officials allegedly identified the voters by comparing names on a list with federal citizenship records. The administration argues that it should separate the ballots until it can verify the voters' citizenship.
In its Supreme Court filing, Solicitor General D. John Sauer warned, "Once California mixes the challenged ballots with lawful ones, there is no way to get the challenged ballots back."
California officials have challenged the reliability of the federal government’s list, arguing that some people identified are U.S. citizens or are no longer actively registered to vote. It remains unclear how many people on the list received or returned ballots.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom has previously warned about the possibility of federal intervention in the state's election process.
On Saturday (October 31), his press office shared a letter he sent to the four federal district courts covering California, expressing concerns that federal agents could attempt to seize ballots before election results are certified.
In the letter, Newsom wrote, "I have grave concerns federal agents will seek search warrants to seize ballots and ballot materials before the election results are certified."
The legal dispute comes amid broader court challenges to the Trump administration's efforts to expand federal involvement in elections.
According to an October 2026 report from the Brennan Center for Justice, at least 34 federal district court decisions had temporarily halted or permanently blocked administration actions involving election procedures and voter registration data.
The report also detailed court challenges to the administration's efforts to obtain sensitive voter registration information from states, including concerns about the federal government's authority to collect the records.
According to The Associated Press, U.S. District Judge David O. Carter, who ruled against the administration's request in the California dispute, warned, "If the Executive can discount votes and threaten an ongoing election due to unproven allegations, then our democracy is in danger."
The Supreme Court has not yet ruled on the administration's latest request.
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