NAACP, Voting Rights Groups Secure Victory after DOJ tries to Silence California Voters

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 30, 2026

Contact: [email protected]

SAN FRANCISCO - Today, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, for the second time, rejected an attempt by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to disenfranchise more than 20,000 Californians in the 2026 midterm elections.

This ruling comes after the DOJ sued the state of California for refusing to comply with unprecedented demands to block the counting of Californians' ballots. The DOJ lost in the district court in California and has, again, lost at the Ninth Circuit.

Campaign Legal Center (CLC), Democracy Defenders Fund (DDF), the Office of General Counsel of the NAACP, and the law firm Altshuler Berzon LLP. on behalf of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) and the NAACP, NAACP California/Hawaii State Conference (NAACP CA/HI), and NAACP Los Angeles Branch intervened in this case on October 16, 2026, one day after the DOJ sued the state of California for refusing to count these ballots, despite no credible evidence that these voters are ineligible to participate in our democracy.

"For generations, Black Americans fought, bled, and even died for the right to vote, and we will not stand by while the federal government attempts to disenfranchise thousands of eligible voters through rushed litigation and unreliable data," said Kristen Clarke, General Counsel of the NAACP. "The Department of Justice sought to throw out the voices of more than 20,000 Californians without credible evidence and outside the established safeguards that protect voters' rights. The Ninth Circuit rightly rejected this dangerous effort. Today's decision sends a clear message: our elections must be governed by facts, law, and constitutional principles, not political interference or voter suppression."

"Once again, the Ninth Circuit has rejected the U.S. Department of Justice's lawless attempt to block counting the ballots of more than 20,000 Californians and upend core constitutional principles," said Anna Baldwin, director of voting rights litigation at Campaign Legal Center. "As we get closer to Election Day, and the Trump administration fears that they won't get the results they want, they become more desperate to undermine our electoral process. But the president doesn't control our elections, the states and Congress do. This victory ensures that all Californians will have their voice heard in this election."

"The courts have once again denied the Trump administration's desperate attempt to undermine the freedom to vote," said Juan Proaño, chief executive officer of LULAC. "While this administration tries again and again to disenfranchise Latino voters, LULAC is fighting to ensure every eligible American is able to cast their ballot and have it counted. We will always stand up for our Latino community and their right to participate in our democracy."

"Today's ruling is yet another blow to the Trump administration's attacks on our elections," said Tianna Mays, legal director for Democracy Defenders Fund. "The administration's desperation is growing. They seek to undermine confidence in the coming election and create a pretext to attack results they don't like. We will continue our fight to ensure every eligible voter's ballot is counted."

Background:

On October 14, 2026, the DOJ sent a letter to the Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk in Los Angeles County and California Secretary of State Shirley Weber along with a thumb drive of over 20,000 voters whom the DOJ alleges are ineligible to vote, based on faulty data.

The DOJ demanded that Los Angeles separate and refuse to count these ballots, despite there being no credible evidence that these voters are ineligible.

On October 15, 2026, the DOJ sued the state of California for refusing to comply with their orders, despite the fact that these voters were targeted based on faulty and incomplete citizenship data using a shoddy and opaque methodology.

On October 22, the DOJ circumvented the normal judicial process and appealed this case to the Ninth Circuit, despite not having a ruling from the district court. The Ninth Circuit rejected their appeal on October 26, and the district court ruled against them on October 28. The DOJ again appealed to the Ninth Circuit, and again, lost on October 30, 2026.

CLC and DDF, the Office of General Counsel of the NAACP, and the law firm Altshuler Berzon LLP. on behalf of LULAC and the NAACP, intervened in this case on October 16, 2026.