SAN FRANCISCO — The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit on Monday dismissed the Justice Department's effort to force California election officials to set aside mail ballots tied to about 20,000 registered voters the Trump administration alleges are likely noncitizens, ruling 2-1 that the appeals court lacks jurisdiction over the emergency appeal.

Source: Reuters, via Kat Country 98.9

Judges Mark Bennett, appointed by President Donald Trump, and Gabriel Sanchez, appointed by President Joe Biden, formed the majority. They said the federal government failed to allow the district court 'adequate opportunity' to consider its request for a temporary restraining order before appealing. Judge Patrick Bumatay, also a Trump appointee, dissented, arguing the federal government holds a sovereign interest in protecting federal elections.

Source: CBS News, via When2Meet (USA News)

"The United States's claimed emergency, at least in part, is a self-constructed one," the panel wrote in an unsigned opinion, pointing to the government's own timing: it sued in mid-October, less than three weeks before the November 3 midterms, and sought emergency relief only last week, while California counties were already processing returned ballots.

Source: CBS News, via When2Meet (USA News)

Bennett wrote separately that, even if the court had reached the merits, he would have rejected the bid to set the ballots aside, citing a real risk of disenfranchising eligible voters. The Justice Department sued California on October 15, naming the state, Secretary of State Shirley Weber and Los Angeles County registrar Dean Logan; in its filings the department said the list of about 20,000 people included 28 who had been criminally charged with illegally voting — a department claim, not a court finding. California law accepts a voter's signed statement under oath as proof of citizenship.

Source: The Center Square, via The Answer Orlando

Governor Gavin Newsom applauded the ruling, calling it 'a positive development and a welcome speed bump to Trump's disgusting attacks on the Constitution and our country's democracy' — the governor's statement, reported by The Center Square, which said the White House had not immediately responded on Monday afternoon. The ruling does not end the case: the underlying lawsuit continues in the district court, which is set to hold its first hearing on Tuesday.

Source: The Center Square, via The Answer Orlando

For California's large immigrant and Punjabi-diaspora communities, the practical meaning for now is simple: mail ballots will be processed under California's existing rules while the court fight continues, and no voter's ballot is being set aside under this federal request.