Analysis finds over 40% of names on DOJ noncitizen list are not on California voter rolls

More than 4 in 10 names flagged as possible noncitizen voters in California by the Trump administration cannot be found on the state’s voter rolls, according to a legal filing by an immigrant-rights group, AP reports.

The filing on Saturday, by two data analysts at the University of California, Los Angeles, is the first outside analysis of a list the Department of Justice has used to threaten prosecution of election officials. The analysts reviewed 20,930 names the department demanded California treat as possible illegal voters by separating their ballots during Election Day counting. They found 8,880 names, or 42%, do not correspond to anyone in the state’s current voter file, and at least 22 are US citizens. They also estimated nearly 7,500 naturalized citizens were “highly likely” to be incorrectly flagged as ineligible.

The researchers noted that the administration apparently removed voter identification numbers from the names, making it harder for election officials to check whether those flagged were already on their rolls.

Multiple judges have rejected the demand as unconstitutional, and a federal judge on Friday ordered the Justice Department to stop sending demands to state officials, a decision the administration appealed Saturday.

The Justice Department defended the effort. “Every ballot cast by an ineligible voter cancels out the vote of an American citizen,” spokesperson Kiersten V. Pels said, adding, “The Department makes no apology for protecting those votes.” President Donald Trump also criticised the court rulings, claiming the department had found fraudulent votes numbering “20,000, but potentially Hundreds of Thousands.”