Key facts
- The Justice Department filed a notice of voluntary dismissal in the case on November 6, 2026.
- The lawsuit sought to block counting mail-in ballots from more than 20,000 registered voters federal officials alleged were likely non-US citizens.
- The department wrote that the relief it sought is no longer available now that votes have been tallied.
- US District Judge David Carter had appeared skeptical, saying the request could disenfranchise and confuse legitimate voters.
- The Supreme Court on November 2 rejected a bid to temporarily block counting the ballots on the department's list.
The Trump administration withdrew its lawsuit that attempted to block California from counting mail-in ballots from more than 20,000 registered voters whom federal officials alleged were likely non-US citizens. The Justice Department filed a notice of voluntary dismissal in the case on November 6, 2026, after the midterm elections in which Democrats won by comfortable margins in all of California's statewide contests and most of its congressional races.
The department had argued in previous filings that it needed quick action from federal courts because the contested ballots could not be separated from all other votes once they were accepted. It pointed to that reasoning again in the notice of dismissal, writing that "the relief the United States sought is no longer available" now that votes have been tallied.
On November 2, the day before the election, the Supreme Court rejected a bid to temporarily block California from counting the ballots on the Justice Department's list. US District Judge David Carter had appeared skeptical of the lawsuit, expressing concerns that the request could disenfranchise and confuse legitimate voters and calling it a "monumental change" to election procedures when voting was already underway.