A federal judge in Los Angeles on Tuesday, Nov. 10, closed the Justice Department's lawsuit over California mail ballots. "This lawsuit attempted to disrupt an ongoing election and create confusion and uncertainty for voters and election workers alike," U.S. District Judge David O. Carter wrote in his order closing the case.
"The right to vote is sacred. So, too, is trust in our democracy," he added.
The department had already walked away, in a notice of voluntary dismissal filed Nov. 6. Carter called that a "unilateral withdrawal" of the complaint in its entirety, canceled the hearing he had set for Friday, Nov. 13, and closed the case.
What the government asked for
The Justice Department wanted California to set aside vote-by-mail ballots cast by people it described as "highly likely to be noncitizens" until state officials, working with federal officials, could confirm those voters were citizens. It argued that each legal vote canceled out by an illegal one caused harm that could not be undone.
Carter refused to grant emergency relief and scheduled a hearing on a preliminary injunction for Nov. 13, ten days after Election Day. The department appealed, and on Nov. 2 the Supreme Court denied its request for an injunction while the appeal went forward. Justice Elena Kagan had referred the application to the full court.
The suit never reached the merits.
Why the department dropped it
The dismissal notice says that by the Nov. 13 hearing, California would already have mixed the challenged ballots in with the rest, so there would be no way to separate them again. The relief the government wanted was no longer possible, it said, and the court no longer had jurisdiction.
The department also said it is "evaluating how to best ensure that American votes are protected," including by preventing what it called vote dilution by noncitizens. The filing did not say what steps it might take next. The hearing Carter canceled was set to examine "the validity of the government's list" of voters it said were likely noncitizens. With the case closed, his court will not rule on that list.
California is still counting. Mail ballots postmarked by Election Day count if they arrive by Nov. 10, and counties must certify their results by Dec. 3, according to the secretary of state. Edit USA's results for all 14 statewide measures has the latest count.
