The Department of Justice provided the Los Angeles County Registrar's office with a password-protected thumb drive containing a list of names the federal government believes are likely non-citizens who were sent a vote-by-mail ballot.
Posted by Philip Teresi, Checked
- Sources
- 6 support3 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 95%
Philip TeresiOct 16, 2026
Multiple reliable outlets, including AP, Reuters, CBS, NBC, and the California Secretary of State's own statement, confirm that DOJ delivered a password-protected thumb drive with a list of names the federal government believes are likely noncitizens who were sent vote-by-mail ballots to the LA County Registrar's office.
What was said
… Experts are saying that this is questionable when votes are already being cast. Our ballots have been mailed. Letters reviewed by the Los Angeles Times again call on the officials to respond to the DOJ within 48 hours. McCotter wrote that the DOJ had provided Logan's office with a password-protected thumb drive with a list of names the federal government believes are likely non-citizens who were sent a vote-by-mail ballot. Anybody want to take a guess if there's a single Collins on that list? Quote "We request that you review the list within 48 hours to determine whether any citizens are listed. …
Philip Teresi · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. AP reports that a letter from acting deputy AG Trent McCotter says DOJ provided officials in Los Angeles County a password-protected thumb drive containing names the federal government believes are likely noncitizens who were sent ballots.[1][5]
Supports. The LA County Registrar-Recorder's office confirmed the list was provided on a protected thumb drive, and Dean Logan confirmed receiving the package on Tuesday afternoon.[2][6]
Supports. CBS and NBC both describe McCotter's letter as requesting review of a list provided on a password-protected thumb drive of people the federal government believes are likely noncitizens who were sent vote-by-mail ballots.[4][7]
Context. Sources dispute whether the list was opened or reviewed: LA County had not accessed the device due to security protocols, and Weber said DOJ never sent her office the list. These points concern access, not whether the thumb drive was delivered.[3][6][8]
Context. NPR reports an initial local review suggests the list is unreliable and that some people on it had records indicating U.S. birth. This bears on the list's accuracy, which the claim does not assert.[9]
Sources
9 sources: 1 fact-checker, 2 primary, 3 tier 2, 3 not rated
- 1Justice Department threatens California over claim of noncitizen votersapnews.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 2California Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber, Ph.D., Issues ...sos.ca.gov · primary source · cited for: supports
- 3WATCH: Sen. Schiff Reacts to DOJ Suing California Over ...schiff.senate.gov · primary source · cited for: context
- 4Top U.S. DOJ official orders California to review list ...cbsnews.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 5DOJ threatens CA with legal action over claim of noncitizens on ...ocregister.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 6Justice Department threatens to sue California over ...dailynews.com · not rated · cited for: supports, context
- 7DOJ threatens legal action against California over alleged ...nbclosangeles.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 8Trump admin files ‘long shot’ lawsuit after California wouldn’t open a thumb drive of alleged non-citizens | CNN Politicscnn.com · tier 2 · cited for: context
- 9Some on DOJ's 20,000 'likely' noncitizen list in California appear to be U.S.-bornnpr.org · tier 2 · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
- The Trump administration sent a thumb drive to Los Angeles County Registrar Dean Logan's office containing a list of likely non-citizen registered voters and a sticky note with a password.True
- The U.S. Justice Department delivered a thumb drive containing a list of 20,000 names to Los Angeles County election officials with a 48-hour deadline to investigate them.True
- The Department of Justice delivered a thumb drive containing 20,000 names to election officials.True
- The federal government sent a thumb drive to the California Secretary of State alleging that 20,000 people registered to vote in California are not citizens.Mixed
- The U.S. Justice Department sued the State of California and Los Angeles County to segregate ballots associated with 20,000 individuals identified as likely non-citizens.True