On Monday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision to reject the Donald Trump administration’s bid to block more than 20,000 disputed mail-in ballots ahead of Tuesday’s midterm elections.
Supreme Court Rejects Trump’s Emergency Election Request
The justices denied the Justice Department’s request, filed just hours earlier, refusing to require California to separate ballots cast by voters federal officials suspect may not be U.S. citizens, Reuters reported.
The administration had argued that the ballots should remain uncounted until the voters’ citizenship could be verified, warning that once mixed with other ballots, they could not be retrieved.
However, the Supreme Court issued a brief, one-sentence order without explaining its decision. No justice publicly dissented and the court did not seek a response from California before rejecting the request, the report said.
The ruling followed setbacks for the administration in lower courts. A federal district judge rejected its initial request on Oct. 28, while the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals also refused to intervene on Friday.
Newsom Celebrates Supreme Court Defeat for Trump
Reacting to the decision, Newsom called it “a welcome sight for all Americans” amid what he described as the federal government’s “disgusting and dangerous attacks on our democracy.”
In a subsequent post on X, the California governor declared, “California just secured a HISTORIC Supreme Court defeat against Donald Trump.”
“Democracy won. VOTE!” he added.
In a post shared by his official handle, he said, “Justice is served.”
California has argued that the federal government’s list of suspected noncitizen voters is unreliable and could include thousands of eligible citizens.
Prior to the ruling, Newsom took to X and warned Trump against interfering with California’s elections.
He said that the state would hold anyone interfering with the election accountable, saying, “No presidential pardon will save you.”
The Justice Department did not immediately respond to Benzinga’s request for comment.
The legal dispute comes as Republicans fight to retain control of Congress. California, a Democratic stronghold, holds 52 House seats.
The U.S. Constitution gives states primary responsibility for administering elections, although the federal government retains certain oversight powers.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
Photo courtesy: Sheila Fitzgerald / Shutterstock
Recent Comments