The US Supreme Court has rejected a last-minute request by the Trump administration asking it to intervene in California’s midterm election vote count, according to a BBC report. The ruling arrives on the eve of the midterm elections, which will determine control of the US Congress for the remainder of President Donald Trump’s second term.
The justice department had requested that 20,000 ballots be set aside, alleging they may have been issued to non-US citizens in the state. Two lower courts had previously rejected this request. State election officials challenged the federal claims, arguing that the process used to identify alleged non-citizens was inaccurate and that segregating ballots while voting is underway is unfeasible.
In a concise one-line order, the Supreme Court announced its decision to deny the justice department’s request for an injunction. Justice Kagan referred the application to the full court. The decision allows lower court rulings to stand, effectively concluding the Trump administration’s effort to disqualify the ballots.
Supreme Court Decision Ends Ballot Dispute
California remains the most populous state in America, with approximately 23 million people registered to vote. By Sunday night, the California secretary of state’s office reported that more than six million mail-in ballots had already been received.
Court documents reveal that last month, the justice department sent letters to the California secretary of state and the Los Angeles County Registrar demanding the sequestration of ballots from 20,000 registered voters believed to be non-citizens. Subsequently, armed officials from the Department of Homeland Security delivered letters to county officials and employees threatening criminal charges if the ballots were not sequestered.
In a 22-page brief, the justice department argued that ballots cast by non-citizens could debase or dilute valid votes. However, a federal appeals court declined the government’s request to segregate the ballots prior to the Supreme Court’s intervention.
Context of Voter Fraud Claims and Lower Court Rulings
The legal battle forms part of an ongoing campaign by President Trump and his administration to address alleged voter fraud, which they contend is widespread, despite research indicating that it is extremely rare. President Trump has frequently asserted that immigrants vote illegally and has blamed postal voting permitted in Democratic states.
District judge David Carter issued a critical ruling last week describing the government’s actions in California as an ongoing pattern of attempted election interference by the Trump administration. Judge Carter noted that the federal government had never before attempted to coerce state and local governments on the eve of an election to abandon constitutional election procedures.
Source: Supreme Court rejects Trump's request to stop California counting disputed votes (source-feed timestamp 2026-11-03T03:32:36+00:00). AI-assisted report based on the cited linked article and its RSS feed; details were not independently verified.
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