Appeals judges question Justice Department bid to set aside 20,000 California mail ballots

A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments on Sunday over the Trump administration's demand that California separate roughly 20,000 mail ballots sent to people federal officials suspect are not citizens.

The panel did not rule after the session in San Francisco, which ran about 105 minutes, according to Votebeat.

The arguments

Justice Department lawyer Matthew Donnelly urged the court to act quickly. Judge Mark Bennett, a Trump appointee, asked why the department had not sued sooner and questioned whether federal law lets Washington dictate how a state screens its voters, The Washington Sun reported. Judge Gabriel Sanchez, a Biden appointee, pressed on how reliable the federal list is.

Votebeat reported that Judge Patrick Bumatay, also a Trump appointee, appeared more open to the government's position.

California Deputy Attorney General Samuel Siegel said voters must attest to their citizenship and argued no law supports the remedy the department wants.

What counties found

Los Angeles County officials said 7,035 names on the list had county addresses. In a sample of 200, most had never voted, and a significant share indicated they were born in the United States, according to filings described by ABC News and Votebeat.

The department has charged about 28 people from the list with voting and immigration crimes, ABC News reported.

What comes next

California mailed ballots and opened early voting centers on Oct. 5.