The Department of Justice sued California to stop the counting of thousands of ballots.
Posted by Up First from NPR, Checked
- Sources
- 3 support3 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 93%
Up First from NPROct 20, 2026
The DOJ sued California on October 15, 2026, asking a federal judge to block the state from counting mail ballots from more than 20,000 alleged noncitizen voters, which matches the claim's 'thousands of ballots' as of the posting date.
What was said
… Democrats are spending there too, so where is each party deciding to go all in? And the Justice Department is escalating its fight with California over allegations of non-citizens voting. Last week, it sued the state to stop thousands of ballots. How is that connected to a series of new criminal cases? Stay with us. We've got the news you need to start your day. Democrats and Republicans are opposed to President Trump's friendlier stance toward Russia. …
Up First from NPR · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. Reuters reports the Justice Department sued California on October 15, 2026, asking a federal judge to block the state from counting mail ballots from more than 20,000 voters it alleges are likely non-citizens.[1]
Supports. The DOJ's own Central District of California press release confirms it filed a complaint against the State of California on October 15, 2026, over its voter list and the alleged noncitizen registrations.[2]
Supports. Democracy Docket's case page lists the lawsuit as filed October 15, 2026, and says it seeks to block California from counting mail ballots cast by individuals the DOJ considers likely noncitizens.[3]
Context. The figure of more than 20,000 voters is consistent with the claim's 'thousands of ballots' wording, and the post's own passage uses the same framing.[1][2]
Context. Later sources report a district judge denied the DOJ's bid on October 28 and the 9th Circuit declined to order the ballots set aside, but these developments came after the October 20 posting and do not change the verdict on the claim's date.[4][5][6]
Sources
6 sources: 1 fact-checker, 1 primary, 2 not rated, 2 tier 2
- 1DOJ sues California to block votes from alleged non-citizensreuters.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports, context
- 2Central District of California | United States Sues ...justice.gov · primary source · cited for: supports, context
- 3Court Cases - California DOJ Voter Roll Interference ...democracydocket.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 4Judge denies DOJ bid to stop processing California ballotsnpr.org · tier 2 · cited for: context
- 5Appeals court dismisses DOJ's request to force California to ...cbsnews.com · tier 2 · cited for: context
- 6Appeals court rejects DOJ request for CA to set aside ...sandiegouniontribune.com · not rated · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
- The Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against California regarding the counting of 20,000 illegal ballots.True
- The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit seeking to block the counting of 20,000 non-citizen ballots in California.True
- The Department of Justice is seeking to block up to 20,000 ballots from being counted in California due to concerns they may be from non-citizens.True
- The Department of Justice has requested that California segregate the ballots of the 20,000 individuals on the provided list and not count them until they are investigated.True
- The Justice Department is attempting to force California election officials to set aside ballots it claims were sent to 20,000 non-citizens.True