Driving the news: The majority of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit voted Tuesday to overturn U.S. District Judge Trina Thompson’s blockade of the Trump administration.
- Tuesday’s order reinstated a ruling by a smaller panel of judges.
What’s inside: Thompson’s order barred federal pressure to throw out ballots based solely on allegations of ineligibility and stopped administration officials from threatening state and local officials with criminal prosecution for not complying with his demands.
- It also found that the Justice Department and the Department of Homeland Security likely violated the Voting Rights Act’s ban on voter intimidation and overstepped their constitutional authority over elections, Axios’ Andrew Pantazi previously reported.
- But a three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit found that the administration’s letters represented “essential executive functions that did not actually disrupt the states’ regulation of their own elections,” granting the request to suspend the government.
Catch up quickly: Unions representing election workers and civil rights organizations launched the quick legal push by filing their suit Thursday.
- They alleged that DOJ and DHS officials “engaged in a coordinated campaign to intimidate, threaten, and coerce state and local officials and employees,” noting that the DOJ ordered prosecutors to pursue criminal subpoenas in the midst of an election battle with the state of California.
- The suit also cites letters sent to election officials in California and Washington about ballots they say were sent to possible non-citizens.
Please note: The Supreme Court late Monday rejected the Trump administration’s request to require separate votes in California from more than 20,000 voters the government suspects are “probably” noncitizens, dealing a blow to the administration in its pre-election legal blitz.
- Another key legal battle is playing out in the north over the closely watched Alaska Senate race.
Go further: Election night opens with Trump in fight mode
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