By The Republic Standard News Staff
Category: Republic | Tags: Immigration, Department of Justice, California Secretary of State, Bill Essayli
The Justice Department announced election-related criminal charges against 28 lawful permanent residents in California, including 11 people arrested Monday, as it seeks court intervention over ballots tied to suspected noncitizen voters.
Federal lawyers asked a court to prevent California from tabulating ballots cast by about 20,000 registered voters until their citizenship status can be confirmed. The department sued the state last week after giving state and local officials 48 hours to review the identified names.
Bill Essayli said California officials were sending ballots to noncitizens and declining to follow federal law. “California is mailing ballots to noncitizens, and they are refusing to comply with federal law,” Essayli said.
The Department of Homeland Security compiled the list by comparing publicly accessible voter-registration data against immigration records and other federal information. Justice Department attorneys said the agency did not rely on the SAVE system in making those identifications.
California Challenges Request
Attorneys for California Secretary of State Shirley Weber asked the court to deny the federal request. Weber’s office has received federal grand jury subpoenas involving roughly 300 people since August.
Los Angeles County officials reviewed 200 names. Nearly 43% had voter registrations that were later canceled, while 86 had received a ballot by mail. About 71% of those reviewed had never voted.
David Becker said he believed the Justice Department’s lawsuit against California would not succeed. Aman Bhullar said blocking the ballots pending verification could have a “catastrophic impact” on voting in Los Angeles County.
Kevin Lainez said the 28 charged individuals are entitled to the legal procedures available in their cases.