The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has cautioned California officials that they may face legal consequences if they count ballots from noncitizens. This warning follows the DOJ's identification of over 20,000 registered voters in Los Angeles County who are suspected of being noncitizens.
The DOJ sent a letter to Los Angeles County election officials, indicating that counting noncitizen ballots is a federal crime.
The letter, dated October 16, emphasized that officials who count these ballots could be guilty of aiding and abetting crime.
Despite the DOJ's request to review the ballots, Los Angeles officials declined to follow the instruction due to data security concerns.
The DOJ stated it was not asking for mass voter roll purges but wanted ballots from suspected noncitizens to be segregated until citizenship is confirmed.
California's known issues with noncitizen voting were highlighted, including previous notices from Homeland Security about potential noncitizens on voter rolls.
California laws allow automatic ballot mailing to all registered voters, but federal law prohibits noncitizens from voting in federal elections.
The DOJ maintains that failure to comply with federal election laws regarding noncitizen voting could have significant legal repercussions for California officials.
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