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Justice Department Charges 28 in California With Voting Crimes

Federal prosecutors also seek an emergency court order halting processing of certain returned ballots before the November 3 midterms

By AXY Politics Desk ·

Reporting via NPR Politics
Reporting via NPR Politics (ajay_suresh · CC BY 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons)

Key points

The U.S. Justice Department has charged 28 people in California with voting crimes, according to NPR Politics, which reported the action on October 19, 2026, as election tensions in the state escalated less than three weeks before the November 3, 2026 midterm elections. In a separate step, the department filed an emergency request in federal court asking a judge to stop California from processing ballots returned by people on voter rolls that the federal government says are "likely noncitizens." Together, the two actions place the state's election administration at the center of a federal dispute only weeks before voters across the country cast their ballots.

The available reporting is limited. It does not name the 28 defendants, list the specific charges filed against each of them, identify the court where the criminal cases were brought, or explain how the federal government built its list of voters it considers likely noncitizens. It also does not describe whether a judge has yet ruled on the emergency request. This article therefore explains the legal and political background that gives these actions their weight, rather than presenting a complete account of the individual cases, which remain to be developed in court.

What the Charges and the Court Request Involve

Voting crimes cover a range of conduct. Prosecutors may bring cases when someone allegedly casts a ballot they were not entitled to cast, registers to vote while ineligible, or gives false information on election forms. Federal law makes it a crime for a noncitizen to vote in federal elections, and it separately penalizes people who falsely claim U.S. citizenship in certain contexts. Charging 28 people in one announcement is a significant number for a single state, and it suggests that federal investigators believe the conduct is connected rather than isolated. Charges, however, are allegations. Each defendant is presumed innocent unless a court or jury decides otherwise, and a charge does not by itself establish how many ballots, if any, were affected.

The emergency request is a different kind of action. Rather than charging individuals, it asks a court to order a state to change how it handles ballots that voters have already returned. Courts can issue temporary orders while a larger case proceeds, but they generally do so only when the party asking for relief shows that waiting for the normal schedule could cause harm that cannot later be undone. In this case, the harm the government is asking the court to prevent is not spelled out in the available reporting. A judge would decide whether that urgency exists, and the outcome was not described in the reporting available for this article.

How Citizenship Checks Became a Flashpoint

Citizenship is the foundation of voting eligibility in U.S. federal elections. Only citizens may vote in those contests, which include elections for the House of Representatives and the Senate. Most states, including California, ask voters to confirm their citizenship when they register, typically under penalty of perjury. Concern about whether noncitizens are voting, and whether state voter rolls are accurate enough to prevent it, has been a recurring theme in American politics for well over a decade. Officials from both major parties have argued about how often the problem occurs and what states should do to find it.

Research and audits in several states have generally found that confirmed cases of noncitizen voting are rare compared with the total number of ballots cast. Critics of aggressive roll checks argue that the databases used to flag possible noncitizens can contain errors, including outdated records, mismatched names, or people who have since become citizens through naturalization and were still listed as noncitizens in the records being compared. Supporters counter that periodic checks are a basic part of keeping rolls accurate and that the law requires states to remove ineligible registrants. The current dispute sits squarely between these positions, which helps explain why it has drawn strong reactions from different sides.

The Federal Role in State-Run Elections

In the United States, elections are administered mainly by states and counties rather than by the federal government. Each state sets rules for registration, early and mail voting, ballot handling, signature verification, and the certification of results, and local election officials carry out most of the day-to-day work. The federal government's main roles include enforcing federal criminal laws, protecting voting rights, and setting some national standards. One of those standards is the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, commonly called the motor voter law, which governs how states register voters and maintain their voter lists.

That division of responsibility is why an emergency court request aimed at a state's ballot processing draws close attention. It tests how far federal authority can reach into routine election operations that states normally control. Courts have historically been the place where those boundaries are settled. Any request of this kind would likely be heard in federal district court, with the possibility of appeals to a federal appeals court and potentially beyond, depending on how quickly the parties move and how the initial rulings come out.

Why the Timing Matters Before the November Midterms

The timing is central to the story. The November 3, 2026 midterm elections will decide the House and a portion of the Senate, and they fall only about two weeks after the October 19 actions. Federal law places limits on how close to an election states may systematically remove voters from their rolls. Under the National Voter Registration Act, states generally may not carry out large-scale removal programs within 90 days of a federal election. October 19 falls inside that window for the November 3 vote, which is one reason election lawyers often focus on late-stage changes to voter lists. The law's restrictions are aimed at programs that remove many names at once, and how they apply to a given situation can itself be disputed.

Ballot handling raises a separate practical issue. California relies heavily on mail voting, and many voters return their ballots before election day. Changing how returned ballots are processed would affect a large group of people and would require county election offices to act quickly, often while they are already busy with mailing, tracking, and signature checks. Any court ruling in the coming weeks would arrive while ballots are still coming in, leaving limited room for election officials to adjust without confusion. That operational reality is one reason election administrators across the country tend to resist late changes, even when they share the underlying goal of accurate rolls.

Reactions and the Stakes for Voters

NPR's reporting describes the actions as escalating tensions in the state. The response from California state officials, county election administrators, political parties, and advocacy groups on different sides will shape how the dispute develops, both in public debate and in court filings. The available reporting does not include specific statements from the state or from county officials about the emergency request, so the positions of those parties should be checked in their own announcements as they are released.

Election lawyers who follow these issues generally expect contested emergency requests to be argued quickly. In a case like this, a state would typically argue that its existing verification procedures are adequate and that the federal government has not shown the kind of imminent, irreparable harm that would justify halting ballot processing. The federal government would be expected to argue the opposite. These are the standard lines of argument in such disputes, and this article does not predict how a judge will weigh them.

For ordinary voters, the practical questions are narrower. Anyone who has already returned a ballot should check its status through their county election office. Anyone who is registered should confirm that their name, address, and citizenship information are current. Election officials typically advise voters to rely on official state and county channels, rather than social media posts, for updates on court orders and procedural changes, because rules can shift quickly during litigation.

What to Watch Next

Several developments will clarify the situation in the coming days. The first is whether a federal judge schedules a hearing on the emergency request and how quickly that hearing takes place, since the speed of the schedule will shape what options are still open before the election. The second is how the 28 criminal cases proceed, including the initial court appearances, the specific statutes charged, and whether any defendant contests the allegations. The third is whether any ruling on ballot processing is appealed, which could push the dispute toward a higher court before November 3.

A fourth question is what the government's list of voters it considers likely noncitizens contains and how it was compiled. The available reporting does not describe that process, and it will matter both legally and politically. Records of this kind can be central to how courts evaluate whether an emergency is genuine and whether the state's existing checks are sufficient.

The case also matters beyond California. It raises three broader questions. The first is how federal criminal enforcement and federal court requests interact with state control of elections. The second is how accurately governments can identify ineligible voters without wrongly removing eligible ones. The third concerns public trust in election administration, which has become a subject of intense debate in recent years. How officials and courts respond in the coming weeks will shape not only the outcome in California but also how other states approach their own voter-roll checks before the midterms. Readers who want to follow the story should look to the court dockets and official announcements from the Justice Department, the California Secretary of State, and county election offices as they are published.

Questions and answers

How many people did the Justice Department charge in California?

According to NPR Politics, the Justice Department has charged 28 people in California with voting crimes. The available reporting does not list the individual defendants or the specific charges against each of them.

What is the Justice Department asking a court to do in California?

The department filed an emergency request in federal court asking a judge to stop California from processing ballots returned by people on voter rolls that the federal government says are likely noncitizens.

Why does the timing matter before the midterm elections?

The November 3, 2026 midterms fall within 90 days of the October 19 actions, a period in which federal law generally bars states from carrying out large-scale voter-roll removals. Any court ruling would arrive while ballots are still being returned.

What happens next in the California case?

Key next steps include whether a federal judge schedules a hearing on the emergency request, how the 28 criminal cases proceed, and whether any ruling is appealed. The outcome of the emergency request was not described in the available reporting.

Topics: Justice Department, California elections, voting crimes, noncitizen voting, voter rolls, 2026 midterm elections, federal court

Sources: NPR Politics

https://axynewsglobal.com/article/justice-department-charges-28-in-california-with-voting-crimes