Justice Department leadership has directed top federal prosecutors in California to pursue criminal subpoenas of state and local election officials over their handling of allegedly illegal voting, according to two people familiar with the matter cited by Bloomberg Law. Federal prosecutors in Los Angeles and at least one other California district are expected to begin carrying out the directive on Thursday.
The move marks a sharp escalation in the Trump administration’s scrutiny of state-run elections days before the midterm elections. It follows a federal judge’s rejection of the department’s attempt to force California to set aside up to 20,000 mail ballots, a request the judge called a threat to democracy.
According to the report, the Los Angeles US attorney’s office, led by Bill Essayli, has pushed to investigate officials including California’s secretary of state. The names of the officials targeted and the charges the department may pursue are not yet known.
The department has warned California counties that officials who knowingly count ballots cast by people identified by federal agencies as noncitizens could face criminal liability. California’s attorney general has accused the department of politicising the law.
Source: Bloomberg Law
