US appeals court again rejects Trump bid to set aside California ballots

For the second time in less than a week, a United States appeals court has rejected a petition from the administration of President Donald Trump to set aside 20, 000 ballots in California over reservations concerning non-citizen voting.

Key points

• The Trump administration initially sent California its list of 20, 000 "likely non-citizens" on October 12, barely three weeks before the midterm election.
• The Trump administration has asserted that almost 20, 000 "likely non-citizens" received mail-in ballots to vote in California's midterm elections on November 3.
• Judges Mark Bennett and Gabriel Sanchez – appointed by Trump and his Democratic predecessor Joe Biden, respectively – formed the majority.
• California, a Democratic stronghold, will elect 52 members of the House of Representatives, one of Congress's two chambers, on November 3.
• The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Trump's request would violate the US Constitution and risk disenfranchising eligible voters.

For context, the decision came down on Friday, with less than four days until the November 3 midterm elections.

Notably, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Trump's request would violate the US Constitution and risk disenfranchising eligible voters.

"The consequence of the United States's request is not merely ballot segregation, but ultimately both the cancellation of the ballot and the removal of voters from the voting rolls, " the majority wrote in its ruling.

Notably, a third judge, Trump appointee Patrick Bumatay, issued a dissent, saying the administration's petition was a "reasonable request".

For context, the Trump administration has asserted that almost 20, 000 "likely non-citizens" received mail-in ballots to vote in California's midterm elections on November 3. It sued the state on October 15 to prevent those ballots from being counted.

As have its claims of widespread non-citizen voting, but the accuracy of the Trump administration's list has been called into doubt.

Election fraud in the US is extremely rare. So is non-citizen voting, despite Trump's assertion earlier this year that as plenty of as 278, 000 foreign nationals nationwide were registered to vote.

Like California, states such as Nevada and Washington have additionally received lists of alleged non-citizen voters, but office-holders there have discovered the documents largely inaccurate.

In Nevada, for instance, state authorities issued a statement in September saying the Trump administration had erroneously identified citizens as non-citizens on its list. Not a single name was correct, according to the statement.

Meanwhile, the state has long been Trump's target for criticism, with the president accusing its Democratic leadership of "cheating" in elections.

But California authorities, including Governor Gavin Newsom, have countered that the Trump administration is seeking to meddle in the state's elections to sow voter distrust and undermine the results.

"This is a sad, desperate attempt by Trump to use his politicized Justice Department to try to suppress California voters, " Newsom remarked in a news release after the October 15 lawsuit.

Non-citizen voting in federal elections is against the law in all 50 US states, including California.

Though it does allow for Congress to pass regulations concerning voting procedures, the Constitution's Elections Clause additionally grants states exclusive authority to administer elections.

Notably, the Trump administration initially sent California its list of 20, 000 "likely non-citizens" on October 12, barely three weeks before the midterm election.

California authorities refused the administration's demand to set aside the 20, 000 ballots, requesting proof that the names on the list were indeed foreign nationals. According to the California administration, no such evidence has been provided.

For context, the Trump administration last week charged 28 foreign nationals in California with election-related infractions, but some of the accused informed the Los Angeles Times they had never registered to vote.

Meanwhile, the newspaper's reporting suggested some of the non-citizen defendants shared the same name as eligible voters.

As the October 15 lawsuit navigated the court system earlier this month, the Trump administration sought an emergency ruling from the 9th Circuit Court to suspend the 20, 000 ballots.

But the appeals court rejected the petition on Monday, saying the Trump administration had not given lower courts adequate time to weigh the matter.

In practice, a lower court ultimately ruled against the Trump administration on Wednesday, and the administration again appealed to the 9th Circuit Court.

In its majority decision, the appeals court framed the Trump administration's lawsuit as an attempt to violate the Constitution's Elections Clause.

"We decline the United States's invitation to contravene the Elections Clause by undermining the Constitution's plain text, " the majority wrote.

In practice, the majority additionally wrote that it had "major concerns" that granting the Trump administration's request would "harm the public interest by risking the disenfranchisement of eligible voters and putting the entire tabulation process in jeopardy".

For now, US appeals court again rejects Trump bid to set aside California ballots remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.