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Ninth Circuit ballot appeal

News · Heat 7.8 / 10 · 3 shows · 24m airtime

A three-judge Ninth Circuit panel heard emergency oral argument on October 25 on the DOJ's bid to segregate California midterm ballots, then rejected the bid to force the state to set aside the ballots the federal government calls non-citizen ballots. At argument, DOJ lawyer Matt Donnelly could not say where the 20,000-name voter database or the thumb drive came from, and a Trump-appointed judge on the two-to-one panel questioned DOJ's elections-clause authority to block the ballots. Judge Carter, hearing the underlying case, has written that DOJ's actions show a broad ongoing pattern of attempted election interference by federal officials. The provenance of the database and the scope of the elections clause remain open, and California has warned it will seek…

How 3 podcasts covered it

  1. Legal AF by MeidasTouch, 2026-10-26 (0:00 to 11:42)
    Walks through the Zoom argument and predicts
    Walks through the Sunday Zoom argument: Bennett's jurisdiction attack, Sanchez's questions on the database, and Donnelly's inability to answer where it came from. Frames the panel as skeptical and predicts a 2-1 or 3-0 loss for DOJ.
    New angle: DOJ lawyer Matt Donnelly could not say where the 20,000-name voter database or the thumb drive came from.
  2. Legal AF by MeidasTouch, 2026-10-27 (17:13 to 24:00)
    Plays the judge questioning DOJ's authority
    Plays a clip of a Trump-appointed Ninth Circuit judge questioning DOJ's elections-clause authority and argues the request is a last-minute systemic purge with no evidence of non-citizenship. Notes the panel is two-to-one with two Trump appointees and that the lower court has not ruled.
    New angle: A Trump-appointed judge on the two-to-one Ninth Circuit panel questioned DOJ's elections-clause authority to block the ballots.
  3. The Fox News Rundown, 2026-10-30 (10:00 to 11:17)
    Reports the DOJ's Ninth Circuit appeal
    Reports the DOJ's appeal to the Ninth Circuit after Judge Carter refused to order California to segregate the 20,000 ballots, and reads Carter's line that federal officials show a pattern of attempted election interference. Weighs whether the shadow docket reaches the justices before November 3.
    New angle: Judge Carter wrote that DOJ's actions show a broad ongoing pattern of attempted election interference by federal officials.
  4. Pod Save America, 2026-10-30 (55:54 to 59:47)
    Reports the appeals court refusing the ballot bid
    Wraps the midterm-interference discussion around the California ballot case and reports the outcome: an appeals court refused to force the state to set aside the ballots the federal government calls non-citizen ballots. Adds the poll-monitor agency list from court filings and an MS Now report on FBI agents' fears.
    New angle: An appeals court rejected the bid to force California to set aside the ballots the federal government calls non-citizen ballots.
Unpacking...