9th Circuit rejects Trump’s request to halt the counting of more than 20,000 mail-in ballots in California

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, based in San Francisco, rejected the Donald Trump administration’s request to suspend the counting of more than 20,000 mail-in ballots in California. The US government had argued that some of the voters might not be US citizens.

This is the second ruling within a week in which the court has rejected the Justice Department’s emergency requests in the case.

In a 2-1 decision, the majority of the judges found that the list used by the Trump administration to identify people suspected of not having US citizenship might not be fully reliable. Judges Mark Bennett, appointed by Trump, and Gabriel Sanchez, appointed by former President Joe Biden, warned that granting the request could harm the civil rights of thousands of citizens.

“There is a substantial risk that granting the United States’ request (the government’s request) would result in the deprivation of civil rights” for thousands of people, the ruling states.

The Trump administration argues that people who are not US citizens may also vote in elections, although data shows that such cases are extremely rare.

The ruling comes at a politically important time for the US, as Donald Trump’s Republicans seek to retain their majority in Congress in the midterm elections.

Meanwhile, early voting has recorded record turnout: around 48 million Americans have already cast their ballots.