Appeals Court Declines to Block Counting of About 20,000 California Ballots
An appeals court declined to block California election officials from counting approximately 20,000 ballots that the federal government alleged might belong to noncitizen voters. The decision sends the case back to a federal district judge for further legal proceedings.
Detroit, MI, October 26, 2026 —
An appeals court declined to block California election officials from counting approximately 20,000 ballots that the federal government alleged might belong to noncitizen voters. The ruling sends the case back to a federal district judge for further legal proceedings.
The decision means the requested block was not granted at the appeals-court stage. It does not, based on the available information, resolve the underlying dispute over the ballots or determine whether any were cast by noncitizens. The case will continue before the district judge.
The federal government’s position was described as an allegation that the ballots might belong to noncitizen voters. No finding establishing that claim was provided. The available summary also does not specify which election the ballots concern, when the appeals court ruled, or the legal reasoning behind its decision.
Further details about the parties, the district court proceedings and the next steps were not provided. The name of the federal district judge and the court that issued the appeals decision were also not identified. The ruling’s precise effect beyond declining to block the counting of the ballots is therefore unclear from the information available.
The case now returns to the federal district court for further proceedings. No schedule for those proceedings, final resolution of the dispute or additional orders was included in the summary.
Story summarized from the original created by Associated Press on www.clickondetroit.com, see more information here.
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