More than 400 voters flagged as possible noncitizens; DOJ asks Washington state to set aside ballots
Federal request to Washington
In a Monday news release, Floyd said the department had identified more than 400 noncitizens registered to vote who had voted in multiple elections. He said the investigation would continue.
State reviewing the list
Secretary of State Steve Hobbs’ office is reviewing the list, spokesperson Helen Smith said in an email. Hobbs criticized the request in a statement. Washington has more than 5 million voters on its rolls. The state declined to provide the Justice Department with unredacted voter rolls this year, and Floyd said that decision made his work more time-consuming.
Requests to other states
The request follows the Trump administration’s approach to another state, seeking to sequester ballots it says could be cast by noncitizens. NBC News reported last week that the Justice Department was considering making additional requests to states that mail ballots to all registered voters.
Washington is among the states that conduct elections by mail. The department’s request focuses on ballots cast by people identified on its list.
Key points
- The Justice Department asked Washington to review a list of more than 400 registrants it believes are noncitizens.
- Acting U.S. Attorney Neil Floyd requested that ballots cast by listed people be sequestered in next week’s election.
- Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs’ office is reviewing the list, spokesperson Helen Smith said.
- Washington has more than 5 million voters and declined to provide unredacted voter rolls to the Justice Department this year.