By SUZANNE DOWNING
Nov. 3, 2026 – A late-night legal reversal in the federal appeals court that also hears Alaska cases has restored restrictions on the Trump administration’s demands that election officials set aside ballots from suspected noncitizens.
A three-judge Ninth Circuit panel initially voted 2-1 Monday to suspend a lower court’s restrictions on the Justice Department. But later that night, the court voted to rehear the case before an expanded panel, expressly vacating the earlier order.
The reversal overtook reporting the administration’s initial victory. By Election Day, that panel ruling was no longer in effect.
The dispute arose after federal officials sent election authorities in California and Washington lists of people they suspected were noncitizens, demanding that their ballots be segregated pending citizenship verification. Federal officials also warned election workers of potential prosecution for knowingly processing unlawful votes. The administration says it is enforcing federal election law; challengers contend its actions threaten election workers and could disenfranchise eligible citizens.
The lawsuit was brought by two labor unions, the League of United Latin American Citizens, and the NAACP. A district judge issued a temporary restraining order Oct. 30 restricting federal demands to halt ballot processing or segregate ballots solely on allegations of voter ineligibility, along with related threats of prosecution.
Monday’s initial appellate ruling paused those restrictions. The subsequent rehearing order wiped out that ruling, leaving the administration without the victory described in the social media post.
For Alaska, the immediate connection is a separate Justice Department election lawsuit already headed to the same appeals court.
On Sunday, US District Judge Sharon Gleason dismissed the federal government’s civil case over the appearance of both incumbent Sen. Dan S. Sullivan and Petersburg challenger Decoy Dan — Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. — on Alaska’s Senate ballot. The Justice Department appealed to the Ninth Circuit.
Federal lawyers sought to prevent certification of a potentially affected result and requested ballot segregation to investigate whether voters mistakenly selected the Petersburg candidate.
Gleason ruled that the government had not established standing because it failed to explain how the proposed investigation could remedy the alleged injury while preserving ballot secrecy.
The separate criminal investigation continues.
The cases involve suspected voter ineligibility in California and Washington, and alleged voter confusion in Alaska.
Both disputes, however, concern the federal government’s ability to demand changes in how states handle contested ballots immediately before an election.
One thought on “Ninth Circuit reverses course on DOJ ballot demands as Alaska fights its own election case”
Gleason must have pooped her robe when the Ninth reversed her. The Ninth, a historically, ultra liberal panel, has moderated over the past few years. A glimmer of hope for sound judgment and intellectualized reason.👏