Trump's 'noncitizen' list caught U.S. citizens. A judge just blocked DHS from using it on California ballots.

Chief U.S. District Judge James Boasberg on Monday barred the Trump administration from pressuring California election officials to set aside ballots of voters on its lists of suspected noncitizens. He found that "the Executive Branch has likely violated the Constitution's Elections Clause," the Associated Press reported.

The temporary restraining order bars the Department of Homeland Security from "issuing demands to California elections officials to compel the segregation of ballots," or other departures from existing state election procedures, based on a voter's inclusion on those lists, Democracy Docket reported.

Who sued, and why it worked

The Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA) and a naturalized U.S. citizen sued in Boasberg's court in Washington, D.C., in September. They argued the campaign rested on unsupported claims, risked targeting naturalized citizens and intruded on the states' authority to run elections, Democracy Docket reported.

The evidence backed them up. "CHIRLA has identified multiple members who are citizens but are wrongly included on DOJ's lists," Boasberg wrote. Those members, he found, have to take steps to keep their ballots from being set aside or rejected, and there is a "reasonable probability" some California officials would demand extra proof of citizenship from people on the lists.

The government's claim, and its own admissions

The administration called setting the ballots aside a "modest request" that would still let legal votes count later, AP reported. Its own lawyers have conceded the list has problems. Bill Essayli, who runs the Justice Department's Los Angeles office, first said, "This isn't speculation. This isn't a theory," and later conceded the list may contain errors. Asked in a separate hearing whether the list had a high error rate, Justice Department attorney Kenneth Kao said, "That's a fair statement," AP reported. Those concessions are why this story treats the "noncitizen" label as the government's claim.

Boasberg's order is the latest in a string of losses on the list. The Supreme Court on Monday refused to make California hold back about 20,000 ballots, and the Justice Department has asked for criminal contempt against the lawyers who found errors in the list.

A second ruling, same judge, same day

Boasberg also turned down a broader request from several Democratic groups to bar the Justice Department from asking officials to purge alleged noncitizens or segregate their ballots, finding the groups lacked standing, the legal right to sue, CBS News reported. He still wrote that the department is "attempting to browbeat" states, but said "even extraordinary merits questions cannot justify the extraordinary relief of a preliminary injunction." He noted the pressure had not yet changed any rule for this election.

What it means for voters

California counts its mail ballots under its own rules, and the federal government can't order county officials to pull voters aside because their names appear on a flawed list. If you're a naturalized citizen in California and you voted by mail, your ballot goes through the same process as everyone else's.

Sources

• Judge orders Trump administration to stop demanding that California officials set aside 20k ballots (Associated Press, via The Boston Globe)
• In voting rights win, judge blocks Trump administration from disenfranchising California voters (Democracy Docket)
• Candidates make final pitches in 2026 midterm campaign (live updates, Nov. 2) (CBS News)