Justice Department Subpoenas California Election Workers In Probe Of Noncitizen Voting

SACRAMENTO, California — Los Angeles County election officials have received subpoenas directing them to appear before a grand jury immediately after Election Day as part of the Trump administration’s effort to investigate alleged noncitizen voting in California.

County registrar-recorder Dean Logan’s office on Thursday released copies of subpoenas sent to three employees asking them to appear at a federal courthouse in Orange County on Nov. 4, the morning after Election Day.

The subpoenas demand documents and communications related to letters California Secretary of State Shirley Weber exchanged with Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter related to alleged noncitizen voting.

The subpoenas also seek documents about screening for and preventing ineligible voter participation in elections and records indicating illegal voting has taken place.

The subpoenas, dated Oct. 21 and Oct. 24, were first reported Thursday by the New York Times. They were served as the DOJ was suing the state, Weber and Logan to block election officials from counting 20,000 ballots cast by alleged noncitizens.

U.S. District Judge David Carter on Wednesday ruled against the DOJ in the case and criticized the administration’s rhetoric about election workers, including suggestions they could be prosecuted for knowingly counting noncitizen votes. During a hearing on Tuesday, Carter also issued a verbal warning.

“This court believes it would be wise that any threats to state and county elected employees cease immediately,” the judge said.

Logan said in a statement that Carter’s remarks were “well placed and appreciated.”

“At every step, the U.S. Department of Justice has taken a confrontational, adversarial approach,” Logan said. “Election officials are acting in accordance with state and federal law. Clear court rulings at both the U.S. District Court level and the Court of Appeals have confirmed that. Threats and intimidation have no place in elections. We will take whatever steps necessary to ensure the safety of our employees and to remain focused on serving the voters of Los Angeles County so they can exercise their voting franchise.”

The election officials could ask a judge to narrow the subpoenas, quash them entirely or delay the deadline for compliance. A spokesperson for Logan did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether he will make such a move.

A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment on the investigation, but noted that Carter said instances of foreigners illegally voting in U.S. elections were best addressed through criminal prosecution, rather than civil litigation.

“The district court judge explained that voting unlawfully results in criminal exposure. Consistent with this, California also wrote in its filing that the remedy for unlawful voting is through criminal prosecution,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “While DOJ maintains that a civil remedy is still available, all agree that noncitizen voting is properly addressed through criminal law.”

Justice Department officials also suggested Thursday that prosecutors are not targeting state or local election officials, despite the language in the subpoenas that focuses on the internal operations of their offices.