By a 2-1 vote, a federal appeals court panel denied the Trump administration’s request to immediately order California to set aside 20,000 mail-in ballots. The decision halts a last-minute attempt by federal officials to block the counting of disputed ballots in the 2020 election. The court ruled that the administration failed to show irreparable harm would occur without intervention.
The ballots in question were cast in a state that expanded mail-in voting during the pandemic. The ruling is a setback for the administration’s legal challenges to election procedures in key battleground states. California election officials welcomed the decision, calling it a validation of their process.
The case is expected to continue in lower courts, but the appeals court’s refusal to intervene limits the administration’s ability to alter vote counts before certification. The decision underscores the judiciary’s reluctance to interfere in ongoing election procedures without clear evidence of widespread irregularities.
Source: New York Times Top Stories · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing