Justice Department subpoenas California election officials in voting investigation

The Justice Department has issued grand jury subpoenas to California election officials after a federal judge rejected its bid to separate mail ballots from roughly 20,000 people the Trump administration claims are not U.S. citizens, CBS News reported. The subpoenas mark a shift toward a criminal investigation in a dispute over voting allegations ahead of the midterm elections.

The subpoenas were sent between Oct. 21 and Oct. 24, according to people with direct knowledge and copies reviewed by CBS News. The federal government alleges that California may have as many as 20,000 noncitizens registered to vote. That claim was at the center of its unsuccessful request to have election officials set aside ballots received from those people.

U.S. District Judge David Carter in Los Angeles denied the request, saying it would violate “longstanding constitutional principles” that give states authority to administer their own elections. In his ruling, Carter also criticized government threats to charge local officials who did not comply, writing: “These threats must stop.”

Three subpoenas reviewed by CBS News went to officials in the Los Angeles Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk’s office. They seek documents concerning the county’s correspondence with Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter about noncitizen voting. They also request records on the office’s methods for “screening for unlawful voting by aliens” and information about any evidence it has collected concerning noncitizen voters.

Los Angeles Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean Logan said Carter’s warning about threats to election officials was “well placed and appreciated.” He accused the Justice Department of taking a “confrontational, adversarial approach” and said election officials were acting in accordance with state and federal law.

“Threats and intimidation have no place in elections,” Logan said. His office would take the steps needed to protect employees and remain focused on serving Los Angeles County voters, he added.

A Justice Department spokesperson said the agency does not comment on leaks about grand jury subpoenas, but described criminal investigative action as the next logical step after Carter’s ruling. The spokesperson said the judge had noted that unlawful voting can carry criminal consequences and that California, in a court filing, had identified prosecution as the remedy for unlawful voting. The department still believes a civil remedy is available, the spokesperson said.

Talking Points Memo reported, citing Bloomberg, that the administration was preparing criminal subpoenas after its loss in district court. It also reported that Washington state’s secretary of state had rejected a federal request to separate ballots identified as potentially cast by noncitizens, saying an initial review of the list showed many U.S. citizens.