LOS ANGELES, California, October 29, 2026 — A U.S. Court of Appeals rejected the Trump Administration’s attempt to compel California to discard thousands of mail-in ballots. This decision was issued just prior to the November 3 midterm elections, in which the party controlling Congress will be determined. The rejection is a major obstacle for the Justice Department in its efforts to intervene in state election processes. Appellate court summaries published by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit track federal election litigation.
What the Lawsuit Sought
The Justice Department filed a lawsuit against California on October 15, alleging that Secretary of State Shirley Weber and the Los Angeles County registrar were named in the suit. The Justice Department is seeking a court order to halt approximately 20,000 ballots linked to voters the federal government identified as being potentially non-citizens. The Justice Department wants to prevent these ballots from being processed until each individual voter has had their citizenship verified. Federal litigation documents published by the U.S. Department of Justice examine voting rights lawsuits.
How the Appeals Court Ruled
A three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral argument in a very unusual weekend session. Circuit Judge Mark Bennett (a Trump appointee) questioned if the lawsuit was consistent with the Elections Clause of the Constitution. The Elections Clause allows each state legislature to have primary responsibility for running its own elections. State election administration and voter verification guides published by the California Secretary of State review ballot processing protocols and election laws.
A Pattern of Election-Related Lawsuits
The case was one of several that took place before the mid-term elections. In addition, the administration was filing another lawsuit against the state of Alaska regarding its process for collecting ballots. Both of these lawsuits were part of a strong legal campaign designed to change how states run federal elections. Constitutional law analyses published by the American Bar Association examine election clause jurisprudence.
What Comes Next for Voters
The appeals court ruling is now in effect, so Los Angeles County may continue with the verification and tabulation of those disputed ballots. According to officials, the procedure for verifying the signatures is the same as the one currently utilized across the state. In addition, the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) indicates that the vast majority of states use similar verification processes rather than holding all ballots. State legislative policy reviews published by the National Conference of State Legislatures examine state-level election administration and ballot verification standards.
