DEVELOPING: Ninth Circuit to Rule on DOJ’s Bid to Block 20,000 Illegal California Votes From Being Counted – Panel Reportedly Skeptical of DOJ

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments in the Trump Administration’s lawsuit to block ballots submitted by illegal aliens and noncitizens from being counted, and the judges were reportedly not swayed by the Department of Justice.

The US Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles recently announced that “more than 20,000 people who are likely aliens are registered to vote in California” were sent mail-in ballots.

Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter told Fox News earlier, “We’ve already proven that some people have been voting,” noting that 28 people have already been charged as the unusual Sunday oral arguments were ongoing.

“At the very least, we’ll be charging the people who do that, but for once, we actually have an opportunity to stop the crime as it’s happening and before it gets counted,” he said.

President Trump also weighed in on the massive fraud on Saturday while voting in Palm Beach, Florida, telling reporters, “In Los Angeles, as you know, they have 20,000 votes, and it could be as high as a million votes,” Trump said.

“20,000 is just a little bit, and that had to do with the past election, not this current election. The U.S. attorney found potentially hundreds of thousands of illicit votes,” he said.

WATCH:

The Department of Justice is seeking to set aside and potentially throw out 20,000 ballots that were sent to illegal voters. “Once illegally cast ballots are counted and commingled with lawful votes, the resulting harm may be impossible to remedy. The urgency is heightened because of the fundamental right to vote and to have one’s lawful vote counted without dilution,” the DOJ said in its request for a Temporary Restraining Order

As The Gateway Pundit previously reported, the case was initially assigned to a Trump appointee but then reassigned to Clinton-appointed federal judge David Carter last week. Carter ignored a deadline proposed by the DOJ, prompting the Trump administration to ask an appeals court to intervene.

Now, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals is hearing Oral Arguments after the DOJ filed an emergency request on Friday.

Politico’s Kyle Cheney, reported earlier during the oral arguments that the Ninth Circuit Panel of two Trump appointees and one Biden appointee “seems overwhelmingly inclined to side with California and shoot down the Justice Department’s bid.”

“This is not a close call. Judge Bennett, a Trump appointee, said DOJ’s disagreement with how California identifies and excludes noncitizen voters is not a reason to permit the federal govt to interfere with state procedures,” he wrote.

“Other judges unsure if they have jurisdiction at all (because district court has yet to rule) and worried about longstanding Supreme Court principle that federal courts should not mess with state election procedures on the eve of an election.”

This is not a close call. Judge Bennett, a Trump appointee, said DOJ’s disagreement with how California identifies and excludes noncitizen voters is not a reason to permit the federal govt to interfere with state procedures.

Other judges unsure if they have jurisdiction at all (because district court has yet to rule) and worried about longstanding Supreme Court principle that federal courts should not mess with state election procedures on the eve of an election.

— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) October 25, 2026

Per Politico, the almost two-hour-long hearing left judges skeptical of the DOJ’s arguments. Judges expressed concerns about states’ rights to oversee elections and the last-minute timing of the suit.

This is a developing story.

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