Justice Department tells Washington to hold ballots for 405 voters

The Justice Department asked Washington state to set aside ballots from 405 people it believes registered to vote without holding U.S. citizenship. The letter was sent on Monday to Secretary of State Steve Hobbs, coming less than two weeks after the administration made a similar demand in California. Federal officials want the state to pause counting any votes from these individuals until eligibility is confirmed.

The department identified 1,500 votes cast by this group in previous elections. It is asking for the state to hold any new ballots they cast in the upcoming midterm. Washington has more than 5 million registered voters, and the state mails ballots to every one of them. The Justice Department expects to send an additional list of suspected noncitizens to the state before Election Day. Some of the people on the current list may have since become naturalized.

Neil Floyd, the acting U.S. attorney in Seattle, said the 405 voters represent only a small part of a larger issue. He told reporters that the federal team has found "the tip of the iceberg" so far. Floyd said the list was built mostly from recent contacts between federal officers and people suspected of being noncitizens. He argued that the state’s limits on the investigation prevented officers from checking more records. Without access to state data, proving illegal voting is difficult. The department has requested specific details, including addresses, dates of birth, driver’s license numbers, and partial Social Security numbers.

Secretary Hobbs said his office is reviewing the request. He noted that the data provided included the last time each person voted. One individual on the list last cast a ballot in 1994. Hobbs criticized the timing of the request, which arrives one week before the general election. He said the move is intended to cast "unfounded suspicion on the results." Washington officials also pointed out that recent changes in U.S. Postal Service operations have already complicated voting for thousands of legitimate residents.

This is the third direct state challenge brought by the Justice Department this month while voting is underway. The other two states are California and Alaska. All three have House or Senate races that will help determine the balance of power in Congress. The race for Washington’s 3rd Congressional District is one of the most competitive in the country. Democrats rely on Rep. Maria Gluesenkamp Perez winning reelection to retake the House majority. She has won twice in a district that also supported President Trump in his previous elections.

In California, a panel of federal appellate judges questioned the timing and legal authority of the Justice Department’s demand. They declined to rule on the expedited timeline and sent the case back to a lower court. In Alaska, a lawsuit filed last week seeks to delay the certification of the vote if the Republican incumbent does not win. The Elections Clause of the U.S. Constitution gives state legislatures the power to set the time, place, and manner of congressional elections.

Past investigations have often found fewer noncitizen voters than initially claimed. In Nevada, the administration alleged 1,500 potential noncitizen voters, but a later investigation found zero. In Maricopa County, Arizona, a county recorder initially announced 207 possible noncitizens on the rolls. The county attorney later determined the actual number was eight. Los Angeles County officials reviewed a sample of 200 records from the federal list and found canceled registrations, inactive voters, and people born in the United States.