Judge Bars Justice Department From Threatening Election Officials Over Noncitizen Voting Days Before Florida Votes

Four days before Election Day, a federal judge in California ordered the Justice Department and the Department of Homeland Security to stop threatening election officials with criminal prosecution over claims of noncitizen voting, and to stop pressing them to set aside ballots or purge voters from the rolls. U.S. District Judge Trina Thompson issued the temporary restraining order late Friday, Oct. 30, 2026. It runs through Nov. 16, covering Tuesday's midterm vote and the count that follows, and the Justice Department appealed on Saturday, according to CNN.

For Florida's 67 county supervisors of elections, the order lands after a month in which the Justice Department sent warning letters to election officials in every state. Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd's office confirmed it received the latest one and said it already follows the federal rules the letter cites.

What the order blocks

Thompson, who sits in the Northern District of California, ruled in a lawsuit brought by the Service Employees International Union, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the League of United Latin American Citizens and the NAACP. The complaint accuses Attorney General Todd Blanche and other top officials of carrying out "a coordinated campaign to intimidate, threaten, and coerce state and local officials and employees."

Under the order, according to CBS News and The Hill, federal officials may not:

• threaten election officials or workers with criminal prosecution over noncitizen voting claims;
• demand that officials separate out ballots, or not count them, based on federal allegations that the voters are noncitizens;
• demand that officials remove particular voters from the rolls or deny their ballot requests.

Thompson also ordered the Justice Department to inform the court of any pending search warrant applications or subpoenas, CBS News reported. She set the next hearing for Nov. 13. CNN described the order as halting the pressure campaign on election officials across the country, though the case itself grew out of the department's fight with California counties.

What the judge wrote

Thompson found the federal government had likely violated the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which prohibits "attempting to intimidate, threaten or coerce" people who help others vote, and was acting outside its legal or constitutional authority.

"One of the hallmarks of a fair election is the freedom to exercise the right to vote free from threat, fear, or intimidation," she wrote. "Free exercise of the right to vote is a core tenet of our democracy. It requires safeguarding to ensure full participation and public trust in our elections."

"Although Defendants claim that their actions are designed to halt unlawful voting by noncitizens, their actions are likely to have the effect of interfering with election administration and disenfranchising lawful voters," Thompson added. On timing, she wrote: "Ballots have already been issued. Americans have already begun voting. Workers have already begun processing ballots. Given the consequences of inaction, the Court sees no reason to delay its ruling."

The Justice Department's response

A Justice Department spokesperson criticized the order in a statement to CBS News on Saturday. "The judge issued an order against the federal government without even waiting to hear from the United States, while in other cases the Department's own urgent election claims are delayed by judges until after Election Day," the spokesperson said. "That is a two-track system of justice. The Department is reviewing the order and evaluating all options." CNN reported that the department then appealed.

The administration argues it is enforcing federal law against illegal voting. Evidence from the states and the Justice Department's own investigations has shown that voting by noncitizens is extremely rare, the AP has reported.

The letters behind the case

The lawsuit cites letters that Harmeet Dhillon, head of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, sent in July to all 50 states and Washington, D.C., threatening to criminally prosecute local election officials, according to CBS News. This month the department pressed California officials to separate out mail ballots for roughly 20,000 people it alleges are not citizens. A federal judge in California refused on Wednesday to order the state to set those ballots aside, and an appeals court panel also rejected the request Friday.

On Thursday, Oct. 29, the department sent a new round of letters to election officials in all 50 states, signed by acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter, reminding them that federal law requires them to keep election records and warning that failing to do so is punishable by "up to a year in prison and a $1,000 fine," Politico reported.

What Florida received, and what Byrd said

Florida was among the states whose officials confirmed receiving the Oct. 29 letter. "We already comply with what the letter states," Byrd, a Republican appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, told Politico.

Florida does not appear among the states the federal government has been pressing to remove specific voters or hold back ballots. In a separate case in Washington, D.C., Chief Judge James Boasberg ordered the administration to list the states where it made such demands. In a Friday filing, according to reports on the case, the Justice Department identified California and Washington, while DHS separately listed California, Nevada, Pennsylvania and New Jersey as states where it sent letters about potential noncitizens on voter rolls. Florida was not named in either list. Boasberg has said he intends to rule by Monday on Democrats' request to block the administration from interfering with state election procedures.

Florida has nonetheless been part of the federal noncitizen-voting push in the courts. On Oct. 26, the Justice Department announced charges against 48 noncitizens in five states, including six in the Middle District of Florida accused of election-related crimes such as illegal voting and false claims of citizenship. In Miami, a separate case is moving in the other direction: U.S. District Judge David Leibowitz ruled on Oct. 1 that the federal law criminalizing noncitizen voting is unconstitutional, dismissing the prosecution of Chelsea Cox, holding that states, not federal prosecutors, police voter citizenship. The Florida Press reported on Oct. 27 that the Justice Department is appealing that ruling. It is a different case from Thompson's, and her order does not affect it.

What it means for Tuesday's vote in Florida

For Florida voters, Election Day works the way it always does. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time on Tuesday, Nov. 3, and mail ballots must reach the county supervisor of elections by 7 p.m. that day to count. Ballots are processed and canvassed by the county supervisors and canvassing boards under state law.

The restraining order adds a layer of protection for the people doing that work. While it is in effect, federal agencies cannot threaten Florida's county election workers with prosecution over noncitizen voting claims or demand that they segregate particular ballots on the strength of federal allegations alone. The order does not stop states from enforcing their own laws, and it does not change Florida's existing citizenship checks or its own Office of Election Crimes and Security, which investigates election law violations under the Department of State.

What's next

The Justice Department's appeal goes to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, which could leave the order in place or pause it. Thompson's hearing is set for Nov. 13, three days before the order expires on Nov. 16, when she could extend it or replace it with a longer-lasting injunction. Boasberg's ruling in the Washington case is expected Monday, the eve of the election. Florida supervisors, meanwhile, begin reporting results after polls close Tuesday night.