This court believes it would be wise that any threats to state and county elected employees cease immediately,
U.S. District Judge David O. Carter said during a federal court hearing in California. The Department of Justice has sent identical letters to election officials in all 50 states warning them of potential criminal prosecution if they fail to preserve ballots and voter-registration records for 22 months.
The correspondence, dated October 29 and signed by Acting Deputy Attorney General R. Trent McCotter, highlights federal recordkeeping requirements under 52 U.S.C. § 20701. According to copies reviewed by Votebeat and Democracy Docket, the letters state that willful failures to comply with these rules are punishable by up to a year in prison and a $1,000 fine. The notices also warn against the willful theft, destruction, concealment, mutilation, or alteration of election records.
Timing and Judicial Scrutiny Ahead of the Midterms
The nationwide mailing arrived directly on the heels of sharp judicial pushback against the Justice Department’s pre-election tactics. Judge Carter issued his verbal warning two days before the preservation letters went out, later formalizing a written ruling on Wednesday that rejected a DOJ attempt to force California to set aside ballots cast by roughly 20,000 voters whose citizenship status was questioned by federal lists.
These threats must stop,
Judge Carter wrote, finding that the proposed federal intervention risked disrupting the voting process and preventing eligible citizens from having their ballots counted. Democracy Docket noted that the DOJ confirmed its nationwide preservation letters in a court filing on Friday, maintaining that the recordkeeping reminders are entirely separate from voter-specific litigation.
Justin Levitt, a former Justice Department official and White House voting rights adviser under President Joe Biden, told Votebeat that he knew of no precedent for sending such a reminder nationwide right before an election. Election officials know that they have an obligation to comply with this law — they know that real, real well — and this certainly looks like it’s meant to intimidate rather than to inform,
Levitt said.
Federal Warnings Precede October Election Letters
The October 29 letters follow a series of federal warnings issued to state election offices over the summer and early fall. In July, a mailing signed by Harmeet Dhillon, assistant attorney general for the civil rights division, warned officials of potential prosecution for knowingly allowing noncitizens to vote. In September, Eric Neff, acting chief of the voting section, directed 29 states and Washington, D.C., to preserve records tied to ongoing litigation over voter-registration data.
I have never seen the DOJ send this kind of letter across the country in the days before the election,
Douglas told Votebeat. At least they aren’t targeting based on politics, but it feels very unnecessary and creates confusion.
Parallel legal challenges continue in federal courts. Democratic groups filed a lawsuit on October 20 accusing the administration of unlawfully pressuring local election authorities to remove voters and alter procedures under threat of prosecution. During a hearing in that case, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg ordered the administration to disclose the specific states that received federal communications demanding action on specific voters or ballots, with a compliance deadline set for noon on Friday.
