In the final days before a midterm election, a federal judge in California has drawn a line that the national government was not permitted to cross. Armed federal agents carried letters to election officials demanding that thousands of ballots be set aside as possibly cast by non-citizens, and threatening prosecution if they refused. The court has now held that such pressure, however it is framed, risks pushing lawful voters out of a process that belongs to the people and to the officials bound by law to run it. The episode sits within a longer American argument about who is trusted to guard t
Judge Orders Trump Administration to Stop Threatening US Election Officials Over Ballots
Election officials and workers across California received armed-delivered letters threatening criminal charges, and civil rights groups say the demands risk disenfranchising lawful voters.
Armed officials delivered letters threatening criminal charges to election workers
Mark
Start with the basics. What exactly did the judge stop?
Mimi
She ordered the Justice Department to stop demanding that election officials set aside or not process certain ballots, and to stop threatening them with criminal charges for handling those ballots.
Mark
And those ballots were tied to about 20,000 voters in California?
Mimi
Yes. The letters said the administration believed those registered voters were likely non-citizens. Armed Homeland Security officials delivered letters to county officials and employees threatening charges.
Luke
Careful with "likely." Court documents quote the administration as saying it "believes" they're "likely" non-citizens. The reporting doesn't say how that list was built or whether anyone on it is actually a non-citizen.
Mark
So that's unknown.
Luke
Right. The source doesn't say. The judge's finding is that the actions are likely to interfere with administration and disenfranchise lawful voters. That's a ruling about likely effect, not a finding about any individual voter.
Mimi
And the officials' stated problem was practical. They said state and federal law dictate how they process ballots, so they couldn't comply.
Mark
What about the criminal investigation?
Luke
It's described as "reportedly" begun, with grand jury subpoenas. That's attributed, not confirmed in detail. We don't know its scope.
Mimi
The 24 convictions figure is from the Heritage Foundation's database, as reported by BBC Verify, covering 2005 to 2025. It counts convictions, not every possible case.
Mark
And what comes next?
Mimi
Trump has said he'll keep fighting, and the election is 3 November. More litigation seems likely, though the source doesn't say what the administration will do next.
Le Pouls
- Armed federal agents delivered letters to California election offices, carrying threats of criminal charges unless officials set aside ballots of roughly 20,000 registered voters.
- Election officials said they could not comply, because state and federal law dictate exactly how ballots must be handled.
- A federal judge in California ordered the Justice Department to stop demanding the set-asides and to stop threatening officials with prosecution.
- The ruling lands days before the 3 November midterms, and the president has condemned it and vowed to keep fighting, so new legal clashes look likely.
In the final days before a midterm election, a federal judge in California has drawn a line that the national government was not permitted to cross. Armed federal agents carried letters to election officials demanding that thousands of ballots be set aside as possibly cast by non-citizens, and threatening prosecution if they refused. The court has now held that such pressure, however it is framed, risks pushing lawful voters out of a process that belongs to the people and to the officials bound by law to run it. The episode sits within a longer American argument about who is trusted to guard the ballot, and how much suspicion a democracy can afford before it begins to corrode its own foundations.
Armed officials from the Department of Homeland Security went door to door across California this month, delivering letters to county election officials and staff. The letters threatened criminal charges unless recipients set aside a category of ballots the Trump administration says may have been cast by non-citizens. Now a federal judge has ordered the government to stop.
Judge Trina Thompson ruled that the Justice Department must cease demanding that officials sequester or decline to process the ballots in question, and barred threats of prosecution over how they handle them. The ruling comes just days before the 3 November midterms.
The dispute began when the Justice Department wrote to California's secretary of state and the Los Angeles County Registrar, demanding that the ballots of 20,000 registered voters, whom the administration said it "believed" were "likely" non-citizens, be set aside. About a week later, the armed hand deliveries arrived. Officials said they could not comply with laws that govern ballot handling, and a separate judge had already rejected the demand, warning it would "wreak havoc" on the election.
Civil rights groups and election worker unions filed suit, and Thompson wrote that the actions, though aimed at unlawful voting, were likely to interfere with election administration and disenfranchise lawful voters. A similar letter had also gone to Washington state.
The push fits a years-long campaign against alleged voter fraud, which research does not support as widespread. A Heritage Foundation database found just 24 non-citizen voting convictions between 2005 and 2025. Trump criticised the ruling, asking why anyone would reject "fixing Election Fraud," and promised to keep fighting for "Election Integrity." More legal battles over ballots appear likely before polls open.
Armed officials from the Department of Homeland Security went door to door across California this month, delivering letters to county election officials and employees. The letters threatened criminal charges if the recipients did not set aside a category of ballots the Trump administration says may have been cast by non-citizens. Now a federal judge has told the government to stop.
Judge Trina Thompson, sitting in California, ruled that the Department of Justice must cease demanding that state and local election officials sequester or decline to process the ballots in question. She also barred the government from threatening those officials with prosecution over their handling of them. The ruling arrives just days before the 3 November midterm elections, which will determine which party controls Congress for the final two years of Donald Trump's presidency.
The dispute began earlier this month, when the Justice Department sent letters to California's secretary of state and to the Los Angeles County Registrar. According to court documents, the letters demanded that officials set aside the ballots of 20,000 registered voters whom the administration said it "believed" were "likely" non-citizens. About a week later came the hand deliveries by armed Homeland Security officials, carrying the threat of criminal charges.
The officials and groups involved said they could not comply, because state and federal law dictate the procedures they must follow in handling ballots. A judge separately weighed in and threw out the demand, writing that it would "wreak havoc" in the election. Around the same time, the Justice Department reportedly opened a criminal investigation into county election officials and issued federal grand jury subpoenas.
Civil rights groups and unions representing election workers then filed a legal complaint, accusing the department of interfering with their duty to administer the election. In her order, Thompson wrote that although the defendants claim their actions are meant to halt unlawful voting by non-citizens, those actions "are likely to have the effect of interfering with election administration and disenfranchising lawful voters."
California was not the only target. According to Thompson's order, the administration sent a similar letter to Washington state, demanding that its secretary of state stop processing ballots tied to alleged non-citizen voters.
The moves fit a yearslong campaign by Trump and his administration against what they describe as widespread voter fraud, a claim research does not support, since such fraud is extremely rare. Ahead of the midterms, the president has questioned the security of the vote, alleging "rampant" cheating in postal voting and by non-citizens. He has also offered a $1m (£750,000) reward to anyone who reports a case of voter fraud that leads to a conviction. BBC Verify reported that the Heritage Foundation's database identified just 24 cases of non-citizens convicted of voting between 2005 and 2025.
Trump criticised the ruling on Saturday, writing, "Why would they reject fixing Election Fraud?" He also criticised other recent rulings against his administration on alleged election fraud and vowed to keep fighting for "Election Integrity." With polls days away, further legal clashes over how ballots are handled look likely.
Citations marquantes
Their actions are likely to have the effect of interfering with election administration and disenfranchising lawful voters.— Judge Trina Thompson, in her order
Why would they reject fixing Election Fraud?— Donald Trump, in a Saturday post
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