A federal judge in Los Angeles rejected the Justice Department's request Wednesday to force California election officials to set aside mail ballots from about 20,000 voters the administration suspects may be noncitizens.

U.S. District Judge David O. Carter, appointed by President Bill Clinton, ruled that the DOJ's bid violated longstanding constitutional principles reserving election administration to the states. He described the request as an unprecedented federal attempt to interfere with state procedures on the eve of the midterm elections.

The DOJ lawsuit targeted ballots primarily in Los Angeles County. Officials had provided a list of names to state and local authorities earlier in the month, claiming the individuals were likely ineligible to vote due to noncitizen status. California operates as a universal vote-by-mail state with millions of registered voters.

Carter's decision followed a similar rejection by a three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday. That 2-1 ruling found the DOJ had not properly exhausted options in the district court and that any emergency was partly self-created due to the timing of the filing.

In his order, Carter questioned the reliability of the government's evidence and methodology for identifying the voters in question. He noted that granting the relief could lead to chaos in ballot processing and potential disenfranchisement of eligible voters. The judge suggested criminal prosecution as an alternative remedy rather than altering state election processes.

The ruling preserves the status quo for ongoing ballot counting in competitive congressional races across the state. Noncitizen voting remains illegal under federal law, though enforcement has historically focused on criminal penalties rather than preemptive changes to state tabulation procedures.

Republican officials and election integrity advocates have raised ongoing concerns about vulnerabilities in voter rolls, particularly in states with expansive mail voting. The DOJ action reflected those priorities under the Trump administration, aiming to address potential ineligible ballots before final certification.

Ballot processing continues in California as officials work through the high volume of mail votes submitted ahead of the November 3 election date.