Politics · Published October 29, 2026 at 8:26 PM CDT
Judge Denies DOJ Bid to Set Aside California Ballots
What everyone agrees on
- A federal judge denied a Justice Department request to set aside or segregate certain California ballots.
- The request involved ballots connected to allegations that up to 20,000 voters in California may be noncitizens.
- The ruling allows California election officials to continue processing those ballots.
Each fact above was reported by outlets on the left, center and right.
How each side framed it
Left-leaning outlets · 5
Left-leaning outlets emphasized the judge's rejection of the DOJ request, noted the judge's doubts about the process used to identify alleged noncitizens, and reported that the DOJ had issued grand jury subpoenas to California election officials as part of an expanding investigation.
Center-leaning outlets · 1
The center-leaning outlet focused on the judge's characterization of the Trump administration's noncitizen voting claims as not credible, highlighting the critical language in the ruling.
Right-leaning outlets · 1
The right-leaning outlet focused on the practical result of the ruling, reporting that California can continue counting ballots from the roughly 20,000 suspected noncitizens.
Still disputed
- Left-leaning outlets reported that the DOJ issued grand jury subpoenas to California election officials; this was not mentioned by the center or right outlets.
- The center outlet reported the judge called the administration's claims 'not credible'; this specific characterization was not reported by the other sides.
- Left outlets reported the judge questioned the process used to identify alleged noncitizens; this detail was not mentioned in the right-leaning coverage.
Read the original reporting
- Left AP News Judge denies federal request to segregate California ballots, says it would 'wreak havoc' on voting Free to read
- Left CBS News California officials face grand jury subpoenas as DOJ expands voting probe Free to read
- Left NBC News DOJ subpoenas local election officials over claims of noncitizen voting in California Free to read
- Left PBS NewsHour Judge denies federal request to segregate California ballots, says it would 'wreak havoc' on voting Free to read
- Left The Washington Post Judge rejects Justice Department bid to set aside California ballots Paywall
- Center Reason Trump's Claims About Noncitizen Voting Are 'Not Credible,' a Federal Judge Says in a Scathing Decision Free to read
- Right The Washington Times Judge says California can count ballots of 20,000 suspected noncitizens Free to read
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This page was written by AI from each outlet's headline and short description, following our published rules. Always check the original reporting.