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The Trump administration is trying to block more than 20,000 ballots in California in the middle of an election, citing a list of “likely” noncitizens with no clear explanation of where it came from. On Sunday, a federal appeals court sounded deeply skeptical. Here’s what happened:

How we got here: California refused the DOJ’s demand to set those ballots aside, so the DOJ sued Oct. 15, a week after mail ballots were sent to voters. Days later, it demanded the trial court judge rule by noon the next day.

When he didn’t, the DOJ ran to the 9th Circuit before the trial court had even ruled. Judge Mark Bennett, a Trump appointee, wasn’t having it: “I don’t see how we have jurisdiction.” Later: “You could have filed the complaint a month before you did, right?”

The DOJ’s excuse: It didn’t realize how many ballots were already being processed. LA County’s attorney called that “absurd on its face.” The county reports the numbers daily and livestreams the process. California’s attorney called it “an emergency of their own making.”

The DOJ’s attorney couldn’t say who helped build the list. Judge Gabriel Sanchez, a Biden appointee, asked why it flagged 190,000 people in July but only 20,000 now, and how officials could match names to ballots: “I guarantee you there are many Gabriel Sanchezes in the County of Los Angeles.”

California already bars noncitizens from voting and requires voters to swear under penalty of perjury that they’re citizens. Bennett summed up the DOJ’s case: “This lawsuit is about we don’t like the way you’re sorting citizens from noncitizens.”

Why it matters: Attorney General Todd Blanche says “a number of states” could be next. If the DOJ succeeds here, voters elsewhere could see the same playbook used to stop their ballots from being counted. Read more: www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/...