More than 4 in 10 names on US voter list not on California’s rolls, analysis finds

More than four in ten names on a US Justice Department list of alleged noncitizen voters in California cannot be found on the state’s voter rolls, according to the first outside analysis of the list, filed in court on Saturday, 31 October. The review found that 8,880 of the 20,930 names on the list — 42% — did not match anyone in California’s current voter file.

The analysis was carried out by Matt Barreto and Michael Rios of the UCLA Voting Rights Project for the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA), which is challenging the list in court. It also found at least 22 people on the list who are confirmed US citizens, matched on name, date of birth and address, with 66 more described as near-certain matches.

The list only reached outside hands after US District Judge James Boasberg ordered the department on Friday to hand it over; the administration had called the request a “fishing expedition”. The department has used the list to demand California separate the ballots of those named, warning officials of possible criminal liability. Multiple judges have rejected that demand, and on Friday a 9th Circuit panel refused its emergency request.

The department defended the list. A spokesperson, Kiersten V. Pels, said: “Every ballot cast by an ineligible voter cancels out the vote of an American citizen,” adding that the department made “no apology for protecting those votes.” A separate check by Los Angeles County found about one in four people sampled on the list were born in the United States.

Why it matters

The findings land three days before the midterm election on Tuesday, 3 November, at the centre of a federal effort to intervene in how California counts votes. If the list is as unreliable as the analysis suggests, acting on it could put eligible voters — many of them naturalized citizens — at risk of having ballots set aside.

The Justice Department says separating ballots is a safeguard while eligibility is checked. The dispute now turns on evidence about the list itself, not only on who runs elections.

What happens next

The underlying lawsuits continue. The administration appealed on Saturday against a separate Friday ruling ordering the department to stop sending demands to California officials. Further hearings are expected before and after election day, and the department has not said how it will answer the new analysis.

Sources

• https://www.kcau9.com/news/politics/ap-more-than-40-of-names-on-doj-list-of-alleged-noncitizens-not-on-californias-voter-rolls-analysis/ (Associated Press, 31 October 2026)
• https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/immigrant-rights-group-finds-dozens-of-u-s-citizens-on-dojs-california-alleged-noncitizen-voter-list/ (Democracy Docket, 31 October 2026)
• https://www.workersrights.news/doj-california-noncitizen-voter-list-42-percent-not-on-rolls-ucla/ (WorkersRights.News, 31 October 2026)

This article is for general information and education only. It is not legal or financial advice.