by David Lindfield
Federal investigators have determined that all 20,000 people flagged as likely noncitizens on California’s voter rolls lack U.S. citizenship, a top federal prosecutor said Wednesday as the Justice Department sought emergency action to prevent their ballots from being counted.
Bill Essayli, first assistant U.S. attorney for California’s Central District, told Fox News Digital that investigators have evidence the individuals received mail ballots this month.
He said the number could grow by thousands as authorities review additional records.
“We’re not asking California to take any drastic steps other than to sequester the ballots from the suspected noncitizens,” Essayli said.
“We believe it’s at a minimum of 20,000. That’s the floor.”
California election officials dispute the reliability of the federal list and whether everyone identified actually received a ballot.
DOJ Seeks Emergency Order as Ballots Are Processed
Essayli’s office sued California on October 15, asking a federal court to require election officials to separate ballots returned by people on the list.
The Justice Department escalated that request Wednesday, asking the judge to rule by noon Thursday.
California officials argue that ballots cannot be traced to individual voters once signatures have been verified and the ballots removed from their identifying envelopes.
Los Angeles County alone had already processed 331,000 ballots, according to court records.
“That is true,” Essayli said.
“That’s why we’re getting an emergency court order requiring them to put those ballots aside.
“Ballots have already gone out, people are filling them out, and they’re being returned in process as we speak.
“So, the crime is occurring in real time,” he added.
Essayli said each person on the 20,000-name list underwent an individual review by a federal employee at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and Homeland Security Investigations.