A federal judge has denied the Trump administration's emergency request to halt the processing of over 20,000 ballots in California, which the administration claims are from non-citizens. Judge David O. Carter stated that the request "violates longstanding constitutional principles mandating that states have control over their elections," according to Fox News.

The Justice Department sought a temporary restraining order to stop California from counting these ballots, arguing that they could dilute the votes of U.S. citizens. However, Judge Carter emphasized that the election is already underway and that such an action would "wreak havoc and disrupt the election," as reported by The National News Desk.

Judge Carter also criticized the Justice Department for threatening to arrest election workers, stating that "if the Executive can discount votes and threaten an ongoing election due to unproven allegations, then our democracy is in danger." The judge's ruling highlighted that the federal law cited by the Justice Department does not authorize the federal government to require states to segregate ballots or halt their processing.

The Justice Department has announced plans to appeal the decision to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. NPR reports that the DOJ's list of "likely" non-citizens is disputed by California officials, who argue that it is unreliable and that setting aside ballots at this stage would be unlawful and disenfranchise eligible voters.

California mails ballots to all 23 million registered voters, and more than 3.7 million people have already voted in the state. The Justice Department's actions are part of a broader effort to address alleged illegal voting by non-citizens, with similar requests made in other states.