David Carter

“Never before in American history has the federal government, on the eve of an election, sought to coerce a state and local government to abandon their own Constitutional elections procedures and bend to the will of the Executive Branch,”

David Carter · said 2026-10-28 · reported 2026-10-29

Judge Carter rejected the Justice Department's push for an emergency order to have California segregate roughly 20,000 ballots of individuals the Trump administration claims are likely noncitizens.

“This request violates longstanding constitutional principles mandating that states have control over their elections. If Plaintiff's last-minute request for relief were granted, either party could create chaos for their own political purposes to disrupt the election process. Over 20,000 registered Californians would potentially lose the right that generations of Americans have fought to preserve.”

David Carter · said 2026-10-28 · reported 2026-10-29

Judge Carter wrote that granting the DOJ's last-minute request would violate constitutional principles of state control over elections and potentially disenfranchise over 20,000 registered Californians.

“wreak havoc and disrupt the election that is already underway, create a chilling effect on election workers and voters alike, and discount the votes of United States citizens.”

David Carter · said 2026-10-28 · reported 2026-10-29

Judge Carter said the DOJ request to set aside ballots of alleged noncitizens would disrupt the election already underway and chill election workers and voters.