Supreme Court Stops DOJ from Blocking Mail Ballots after NAACP Intervened

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 2, 2026

Contacts:
NAACP, Chyna Fields: [email protected]
Campaign Legal Center: [email protected]
LULAC, David Cruz: [email protected]
Democracy Defenders Fund: [email protected]

WASHINGTON - Today, following two losses at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and a final bid at the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ) effort to disenfranchise more than 20,000 California voters failed again.

This defeat is part of a legal battle that began in mid-October, when DOJ sued the state of California for refusing to comply with unprecedented demands to block the counting of potentially thousands of ballots from registered California voters based solely upon an unproven allegation that they might be noncitizens. The NAACP is an intervening party and members of its legal department are serving as lawyers in this federal case.

"For the fourth and final time, the administration has been blocked by the courts in a desperate, eleventh-hour attempt to hijack the midterm election cycle in California. This is a victory for voters and election officials alike cross California," said Kristen Clarke, NAACP General Counsel. "This scheme was a baseless and ill-founded attempt by the administration to sow chaos and confusion. We will continue to use every tool available, inside and outside the courtroom, to vindicate the rights of voters and their ability to have their voices heard."

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 California/Hawaii State Conference (NAACP CA/HI), and NAACP Los Angeles Branch intervened in this case on October 16, 2026, the day after the DOJ first filed its suit.

"We are pleased that the Supreme Court affirmed what we knew from the very beginning: that our elections are safe and secure and the Trump Administration has no right or ability to block counting the votes of up to 20,000 California voters," said Anna Baldwin, director of voting rights litigation at Campaign Legal Center. "Today's victory is a win for democracy and for the American people. This Administration's efforts to interfere with free and fair elections will continue to fail."

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. The DOJ then took its case to the Supreme Court, where it was once again struck down.

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.

About the NAACP

The NAACP advocates, agitates, and litigates for the civil rights due to Black America. Our legacy is built on the foundation of grassroots activism by the biggest civil rights pioneers of the 20th century and is sustained by 21st century activists. From classrooms and courtrooms to city halls and Congress, our network of members across the country works to secure the social and political power that will end race-based discrimination. That work is rooted in racial equity, civic engagement, and supportive policies and institutions for all marginalized people. We are committed to a world without racism where Black people enjoy equitable opportunities in thriving communities.

NOTE: The Legal Defense Fund - also referred to as the NAACP-LDF - was founded in 1940 as a part of the NAACP, but now operates as a completely separate entity.