The Ninth Circuit has denied the federal government’s emergency request to require California and Los Angeles County to set aside mail ballots linked to people the government described as likely non-citizens.
The United States sued after state and county officials declined to sequester ballots associated with a federal list delivered on October 12. The officials questioned the list’s reliability. A district judge denied a temporary restraining order, and the government sought an injunction pending appeal before the November 3 election.
The appellate panel assumed, without deciding, that the government had standing and a cause of action. It nevertheless found that the demanding standard for mandatory preliminary relief was not met. The order is interim: it resolves the request for emergency relief, not the appeal’s ultimate merits. Judge Patrick Bumatay dissented.
The panel issued the order on October 30 after the government asked for a ruling that day. The official order explains the procedural history and the competing claims about the voter list.
