Justice Department orders California counties to set aside ballots

The order

The U.S. Justice Department has directed California counties to set aside ballots tied to people suspected of being noncitizens. The order places the focus on county election officials and how they handle the ballots identified by the department.

What it affects

The action concerns ballots, not a candidate or a specific election described here. California counties are the local bodies responsible for carrying out the direction.

Process

The order creates a county-level process for setting aside the ballots identified by the Justice Department. The department’s action does not, by itself, establish that every person connected to a ballot is a noncitizen; it identifies people as suspected noncitizens.

The Justice Department and California counties are the institutions involved in the development. The public record linked here does not identify the counties affected, the number of ballots involved, the date of the order or the next review step.