Isophoric News · Tuesday, November 3, 2026
Supreme Court denies administration's request to make California set aside 20,000 ballots
The Supreme Court on Monday denied the Justice Department's application for an injunction pending appeal in United States v. California (No. 26A624), according to the court's order list of 2 November. The application, presented to Justice Elena Kagan and referred by her to the full court, asked the court to order California election officials to set aside mail ballots from about 20,000 people the department says are likely noncitizens, CBS News reported. The order is unsigned and lists no dissents. The court ruled hours after the request was filed and did not ask California to respond, CBS News and NPR reported. A federal district judge, David Carter, and a divided panel of the 9th Circuit had already refused the request; the panel majority cited a "material risk" of disenfranchisement and the principle that election rules should not change on the eve of a vote, NPR reported. State and county officials have said the federal list is unreliable, and NPR reported that an analysis by the UCLA Voting Rights Project found 42 percent of the names were not on California's current voter roll.
.jpeg){kind=link}