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'High percentage' of DOJ's noncitizen voters list was born in US: LA County analysis

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Mallin, A., & Bruggeman, L. (2026, October 21). 'High percentage' of DOJ's noncitizen voters list was born in US: LA County analysis. ABC News (US). https://abcnews.com/US/high-percentage-dojs-california-noncitizen-voters-list-born/story?id=137429359

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ABC News (US) · collected 2026-10-21 · by Alexander Mallin, Lucien Bruggeman

Quick Summary

Los Angeles County officials analyzed a sample of 200 individuals from the Justice Department's list of alleged noncitizen voters in California and found that nearly 40% reported being born in the U.S., suggesting citizenship, while 71.2% had no voting history. The analysis raises questions about the accuracy of the DOJ's list and the potential for disenfranchising eligible voters if the proposed process is implemented.
Written by AI on 2026-10-21, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

As of October 30, 2026, the Trump Justice Department has issued subpoenas to California election workers in Los Angeles County as part of a criminal investigation into alleged voting by non-citizens, escalating its battle with the largest US state over electoral integrity. On October 15, the Justice Department sued California in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, alleging that more than 20,000 noncitizens are unlawfully registered to vote and have received mail-in ballots. The lawsuit followed a letter from Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter on October 14, demanding that state officials review a list of suspected non-citizens by noon the next day. California has questioned the reliability of the federal government's immigration data and argued that states administer elections under the U.S. Constitution. A federal judge in California had previously rejected a request to set aside ballots for voters on the disputed list, further complicating the legal battle over voter eligibility.

Written for “Trump DOJ Subpoenas California Officials Over Voting Probe” on 2026-10-30, grounded in this article and the 67 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Trump DOJ Subpoenas California Officials Over Voting Probe
Politics · 68 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 17% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
DoJ’s suspected non-citizens list includes ‘high percentage’ of those born in US, LA officials say Same event
The Guardian
⚖️ Leans right Hedges 5 of 25 claims Outlet record 66/100
Some on DOJ's 20,000 "likely" noncitizen list in Calif. appear to be U.S.-born Same event
NPR
Hedges 7 of 36 claims Outlet record 60/100
Trump vows jail time for California election officials counting ballots from noncitizens Different event
Washington Examiner
Hedges 0 of 3 claims Outlet record 70/100
“The articles describe different aspects of a broader issue around alleged noncitizen voting; Article A reports Trump's threat of jail time for election officials, while Article B discusses an LA County analysis of the Justice Department's list.”
Trump threatens California officials with imprisonment over stance on mail ballots Different event
The Straits Times
⚖️ Leans right Hedges 2 of 17 claims Outlet record 66/100
“While related, Article A describes Trump and DOJ threatening California officials over mail ballots, while Article B discusses a later analysis by LA County on the DOJ's list of alleged noncitizen voters.”
California officials who process ballots from suspected noncitizens risk prosecution, US warns Different event
Toronto Star
⚖️ Leans right Hedges 0 of 2 claims Outlet record 64/100
“The articles discuss related issues around noncitizen voting but describe different specific events and outcomes.”
Justice Department arrests more than 2 dozen in California sweep targeting alleged noncitizen voters Different event
The Independent
⚖️ Leans strongly right Hedges 3 of 31 claims Outlet record 59/100
“Article A reports on the arrests made by federal authorities as part of a statewide sweep targeting noncitizen voters, while Article B discusses an analysis conducted by LA County officials regarding the Justice Department's list of alleged noncitizens registered to vote.”
DOJ orders some California counties to verify ballots in 48 hours Different event
Toronto Star
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 1 of 3 claims Outlet record 64/100
“Article A discusses a preliminary analysis of a DOJ list, while Article B reports on subsequent actions taken by federal prosecutors demanding ballot verification.”
DOJ demands that California counties help identify noncitizen voters Different event
NBC News
⚖️ Leans right Hedges 2 of 18 claims Outlet record 60/100
“Article A discusses an analysis of a DOJ list in LA County, while Article B reports on a broader action by the DOJ demanding cooperation from all California counties to identify noncitizen voters.”
Trump administration threatens California officials if noncitizens vote in midterms Different event
The Guardian
⚖️ Leans strongly right Hedges 2 of 11 claims Outlet record 66/100
“Article A describes a threat and warning from the Trump administration to California officials regarding noncitizen voting, while Article B reports on an analysis conducted by LA County showing that many individuals on the DOJ's list of alleged noncitizens were actually born in the U.S.”
Two Indian nationals among 28 charged with election fraud in California Different event
The Hindu
Hedges 1 of 11 claims Outlet record 77/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of election fraud investigations; one reports on charges against 28 individuals including two Indian nationals, while the other analyzes a DOJ list and finds many on it were born in the US.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
12
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
17%
2 of 12 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
withheld
no quote in the article backed the model's score
Publisher signals
70/100
ABC News (US)'s corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
68
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-10-21 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

ABC News (US) · 1251 article(s) · 3 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 3 correction(s)
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Who wrote this

Alexander Mallin
19 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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🔮 "Never before in American history has the federal government, on the eve of an election, sought to coerce a state and local government to abandon their own Constitutional elections procedures and bend to the will of the Executive Branch," U.S .District Judge David Carter wrote in his Wednesday order.
2026-10-29 · assertive framing · Judge rejects Trump admin request for order to segregate 20,000 Calif. ballots
🔮 Bill Essayli, a controversial Trump-installed leader of the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Central District of California, argued in the hearing that the administration was simply pushing for the state to be in compliance with federal law barring non-citizens from casting votes. But state officials and other legal advocates opposing the DOJ lawsuit countered that the litigation violated longstanding Constitutional principles mandating that states have control over their elections -- and could have chaotic consequences for the state in tabulating final vote counts in the weeks ahead.
2026-10-28 · mixed framing · Judge to appoint special master in California voting case in setback to Trump admin
🔮 I'm frustrated that I got it in the middle of the night, but I'm much more concerned that it's filed on the public record." The assistant U.S. attorney in the hearing, John Borchert, struggled repeatedly as Faruqui asked him to explain the government's conduct, which the judge said was unlike any case he had ever seen in the history of D.C.'s district court. Faruqui ultimately granted the request from Flores' and Benavides' attorneys to strike the amended complaint from the docket and said he would continue Tuesday's hearing to determine whether prosecutors established probable cause in their initial complaint filed last week. "Why today on this one case have you changed the entire history of how you charge cases?" Faruqui asked of Borchert.
2026-10-27 · assertive framing · FBI agents charged with lying about Hunter Biden probes accuse DOJ of 'serious abuse'
🔮 She could not immediately be reached for comment on Tuesday.
2026-10-27 · assertive framing · DOJ fails to get indictment against ex-Trump aide Cassidy Hutchinson: Sources
🔮 "The United States seeks a court order to prevent Defendants from certifying the result of the November 2026 United States Senate election if '(1) [Dan S.] Sullivan does not win the election; and (2) had all votes cast for Daniel J. Sullivan been cast instead for [Dan S.] Sullivan and Alaska's rank-choice process played out accordingly, [Dan S.] Sullivan would have won the election.'"
2026-10-27 · assertive framing · Judge appears skeptical of DOJ's legal maneuvering in Alaska lawsuit
🔮 Appeals court rejects Trump admin's voting lawsuit against California The court sent the suit back to a district court, which will hear it on Tuesday.
2026-10-27 · mixed framing · Appeals court rejects Trump admin's voting lawsuit against California
🔮 During a press conference on Monday, Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter attracted some scrutiny when he acknowledged that the administration's list likely included errors, and that "there may be some names on there who it turns out ultimately are citizens.
2026-10-21 · assertive framing · 'High percentage' of DOJ's noncitizen voters list was born in US: LA County analysis
🔮 In a follow-up post resharing the letter, Trump wrote "They will all go to jail for a long period of time!!!"
2026-10-17 · assertive framing · Trump administration threatens to prosecute local California election workers
🔮 Former special counsel Jack Smith is set to appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday to defend his two criminal investigations of President Donald Trump amid growing calls from Republicans that Smith himself face prosecution by Trump's Justice Department.
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Also by Alexander Mallin
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2026-10-29 · ABC News (US)
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2026-10-28 · ABC News (US)
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 19 articles by Alexander Mallin →
Lucien Bruggeman
9 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 About 6 in 10 Americans are confident the midterm elections will be conducted fairly and accurately, while nearly 4 in 10 Americans and about 3 in 10 voters are not confident , according to an ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos poll conducted using Ipsos' KnowledgePanel.
2026-10-27 · assertive framing · How election officials are working to mitigate growing distrust ahead of midterms
🔮 The Justice Department is asking election officials in Washington state to set aside hundreds of ballots it says may belong to noncitizen voters, the latest move by the Trump administration to intervene in a state-run election just days before the midterms.
2026-10-27 · mixed framing · Trump admin demands Washington set aside 400 ballots it says are from noncitizens
🔮 In a statement to ABC News on Tuesday, DOJ spokesperson Kiersten Pels accused California of "willful blindness."
2026-10-22 · assertive framing · Democrats sue Trump administration over alleged election pressure campaign
🔮 During a press conference on Monday, Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter attracted some scrutiny when he acknowledged that the administration's list likely included errors, and that "there may be some names on there who it turns out ultimately are citizens.
2026-10-21 · assertive framing · 'High percentage' of DOJ's noncitizen voters list was born in US: LA County analysis
🔮 In a follow-up post resharing the letter, Trump wrote "They will all go to jail for a long period of time!!!"
2026-10-17 · assertive framing · Trump administration threatens to prosecute local California election workers
🔮 President Donald Trump will once again meet with the top investors in his namesake meme coin in November -- the third such gathering since his return to office -- in what critics call yet another example of the president attempting to profit from his position.
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Also by Lucien Bruggeman
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2026-10-29 · ABC News (US)
DOJ issues grand jury subpoenas to election officials in California
2026-10-29 · ABC News (US)
2 right-wing provocateurs facing election-related charges in Minnesota
2026-10-28 · ABC News (US)
Trump admin demands Washington set aside 400 ballots it says are from noncitizens
2026-10-27 · ABC News (US)
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 9 articles by Lucien Bruggeman →

Topics

California DOJ LA County The Justice Department's U.S.

Subjects

California GPE · 7× DOJ ORG · 4× The Justice Department's ORG · 2× U.S. GPE · 2× ABC News ORG · 1× LA County GPE · 1× Los Angeles GPE · 1× McCotter PERSON · 1× Trent McCotter PERSON · 1× the United States GPE · 1×

Narrative

Federal law doesn't permit this willful blindness." Monica Flores, an assistant registrar in the Los Angeles County Clerk's Office, wrote in her declaration on Tuesday that the Justice Department's proposed process for segregating ballots for these individuals "would risk disenfranchising voters who are validly registered."
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-21
🔮 During a press conference on Monday, Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter attracted some scrutiny when he acknowledged that the administration's list likely included errors, and that "there may be some names on there who it turns out ultimately are citizens.
2026-10-21 · ABC News (US)
'High percentage' of DOJ's noncitizen voters list was born in US: LA County analysis · assertive framing

Claims (12 extracted, 2 hedged)

'High percentage' of DOJ's California noncitizen voters list born in US, preliminary LA County analysis shows Of the 200 individuals in the sample, 40% say they were born in the U.S. The Justice Department's list of alleged noncitizens registered to vote in California includes a "high percentage" of individuals who say they were born in the U.S. and many more who have no voting history at all, according to an analysis of a relatively small sample conducted by officials in Los Angeles. uncertain
who → bear → Angeles
In court papers filed Tuesday, two officials in the county registrar's office delivered the results of their "preliminary analysis" of 200 individuals from the DOJ's list of some 20,000 accused of being ineligible to vote. asserted
officials → file → 20,000
Of those 200 individuals, officials said, nearly 40% "indicate that they were born in the United States, which is strong evidence of citizenship; and 71.2% of the records have no voting history. asserted
% → say → history
More than 16 million votes were cast in California in 2024 and officials there say more than 23 million individuals are currently registered to vote in the state. asserted
individuals → cast → state
During a press conference on Monday, Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter attracted some scrutiny when he acknowledged that the administration's list likely included errors, and that "there may be some names on there who it turns out ultimately are citizens. uncertain
it → attract → errors
"We're not perfect and that's why we've asked California to cooperate with us," McCotter said. asserted
McCotter → ask → us
In a statement to ABC News, DOJ spokesperson Kiersten Pels accused California of "willful blindness." asserted
Pels → accuse → blindness
"California cannot facilitate the violation of federal law," Pels said. asserted
Pels → facilitate → law
"We notified California that noncitizens are likely registered to vote, and we asked the state to independently verify the citizenship of any ballots cast by people on a list that we provided. asserted
we → notify → that
It refused to do so. asserted
It → refuse → ?
Federal law doesn't permit this willful blindness." Monica Flores, an assistant registrar in the Los Angeles County Clerk's Office, wrote in her declaration on Tuesday that the Justice Department's proposed process for segregating ballots for these individuals "would risk disenfranchising voters who are validly registered." asserted
who → permit → voters
"The process the DOJ seeks to have the registrar undertake jeopardizes that core right for potentially thousands of voters, not to mention the finalization of election results, confidence in election results, and the ability to allow new elected officials to be instated in their positions," she continued. asserted
she → seek → positions
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