With the November 3 elections rapidly approaching, federal prosecutors are demanding that California counties help investigate thousands of people suspected of being illegally registered to vote.
The Trump administration has ordered election officials across California to identify suspected 'noncitizen' voters within 48 hours and set aside their ballots, dramatically escalating its intervention in the midterm elections just days before Americans head to the polls.
The demands, delivered by the Department of Justice on Friday, came with an explicit warning that local officials could face serious federal scrutiny if they refused to cooperate.
The sweeping intervention comes as President Donald Trump launches a separate legal battle in Alaska, where his administration is attempting to prevent certification of a crucial Senate race should the Republican incumbent lose.
Together, the moves represent a significant expansion of federal involvement in election administration, raising concerns among Democrats and voting rights advocates about potential interference with the results.
In California, the Justice Department's latest demands follow a lawsuit seeking to prevent the counting of ballots belonging to more than 20,000 people the administration believes could be noncitizens.
But state officials insist the government's information is unreliable and warn that eligible American voters could have their ballots improperly withheld.
The letters, dispatched to counties across the overwhelmingly Democratic state, give election administrators just two days to establish the citizenship status of individuals flagged by federal authorities.
President Trump is intensifying his administration's election crackdown days before the midterms, with federal authorities demanding action against 'noncitizen' voters in California
Election workers extract ballots as they help process mail-in ballots at the Registrar of Voters facility in San Diego, California on Friday
For voters whose eligibility cannot immediately be established, the Justice Department wants their mail ballots separated from others until further checks can be completed.
Officials were instructed to 'segregate - not cancel' the ballots while investigations continue.
The department is also requesting sensitive identifying information, including Social Security numbers, identification records and voter registration documents.
Federal prosecutors warned that counties failing to cooperate could 'risk significant federal scrutiny.'
First Assistant US Attorney Bill Essayli delivered an equally stark warning.
'Any election official who knowingly processes the ballot of a noncitizen is opening themselves to legal jeopardy,' he declared.
Justice Department spokeswoman Kiersten Pels insisted the intervention was intended to 'ensure the most secure election in California history.'
Federal prosecutors have also defended their actions as an effort to protect legitimate voters rather than favor either political party.
First Assistant US Attorney Bill Essayli warned California election officials they could face legal consequences if they knowingly processed ballots cast by noncitizens
Republican Senator Dan Sullivan is fighting to retain his Alaska seat as the Trump administration seeks to block certification of a Democratic victory over concerns that a second candidate with the same name could confuse voters
Ballots are seen being sorted the day after California's primary election in June of this year
'We don't care who you vote for,' said Craig Missakian, the US attorney for California's Northern District.
'What we care about is making sure that every legitimate vote is counted, that we ensure a level playing field for all Americans.'
But the administration's demands have already encountered resistance from election officials.
In Contra Costa County, where authorities received a list containing 407 names, officials said they would continue processing ballots normally rather than immediately setting them aside.
'It's 11 days from Election Day, and this is just not in line with regular precedents,' county elections spokeswoman Dawn Kruger said to the New York Times.
San Bernardino County received a list containing 1,133 names, while Santa Cruz County officials were asked to investigate 81 people.
Elsewhere, the government's data appeared to raise immediate questions.
In rural Inyo County, election officials discovered that neither of the two individuals flagged by federal authorities had been issued a ballot.
Records also showed neither had previously voted in California.
In Mendocino County, officials said the names supplied by the Justice Department did not even belong to their jurisdiction.
'It's not our voters that were listed,' county clerk-recorder Katrina Bartolomie said. 'It's from another county.'
Los Angeles County registrar Dean Logan accused federal authorities of adopting a 'posture of intimidation,' arguing that their intervention threatened local officials at a particularly sensitive moment.
California has more than 23 million registered voters, and more than 330,000 mail ballots had already been counted, according to state court filings.
Acting US Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter stands next to a display showing photos of people charged with illegally registering to vote during a news conference in LA on Monday
AG Todd Blanche insisted the DOJ had no intention of improperly interfering with the midterm elections, despite mounting concerns over its legal interventions in California and Alaska
Federal prosecutors announced earlier this week that 28 people identified through their investigation had been charged with offenses involving illegal registration, with some also accused of voting unlawfully.
Noncitizen voting is prohibited in federal elections, although research has consistently found it to be extremely rare.
Meanwhile, another election-related lawsuit is unfolding thousands of miles away in Alaska.
Trump acknowledged on Friday that he personally ordered his administration to pursue legal action that could prevent certification of the state's Senate election if Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan loses.
'I'm the one that said do it,' Trump told reporters before a campaign rally in Florida.
The dispute centers on another candidate, Daniel J Sullivan, whose nearly identical name Republicans fear could confuse voters and divert support from the incumbent in his contest against Democrat Mary Peltola.
The Justice Department wants Alaska prevented from certifying a Peltola victory while the second Sullivan remains on the ballot, pending an investigation into whether voters intended to support the Republican senator.
Democratic Senate candidate Mary Peltola accused the Trump administration of attempting to manipulate Alaska's election after the DOJ sued to block certification of the race if she defeats Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan
President Donald Trump listens as Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, speaks at a campaign rally at the Curtis D Menard Memorial Sports Center in Wasilla, Alaska on Tuesday
But Alaska's Supreme Court has already rejected an attempt to remove the challenger, who insists he entered the race independently.
Even Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski criticized the federal intervention.
'The Department of Justice should never have filed this lawsuit,' she wrote.
Peltola condemned the legal challenge as 'just flagrant, flagrant corruption in my opinion,' accusing her opponent of using Washington connections to influence the election.
The Justice Department maintains it is protecting voters from confusion and ensuring the election reflects their intentions.
Attorney General Todd Blanche has also denied that the California litigation is intended to obstruct certification of the midterms.
'It is not DOJ's intention to, and it's never our intention to, improperly interfere with elections or the state certification process,' he said Thursday.
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