Local Politics
California Election Officials Reject Federal Voter-Segregation Demands
Multiple California counties received federal letters last Friday demanding they segregate ballots from a list of approximately 20,000 people identified as likely noncitizen voters, with threats of criminal charges for officials who tabulate those ballots. Butte County Clerk-Recorder Keaton Denlay found that 32 of the 47 names on his county's list were not on active voter rolls and seven could not be matched due to insufficient information; he declined further action. Fresno, San Benito, and Orange County registrars also received letters and questioned the lists' accuracy or legibility, with several refusing to deviate from state law. A federal judge appeared skeptical of the Trump administration's legal arguments in a Tuesday hearing, while the DOJ maintained it stands by the list's reliability.