A federal judge on Friday, October 30, temporarily barred the U.S. Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security from threatening election workers with criminal prosecution over the processing and counting of ballots, issuing an emergency order days before the November 3 midterm elections.
U.S. District Judge Trina Thompson of the Northern District of California granted the temporary restraining order in Service Employees International Union v. U.S. Department of Justice, case No. 3:26-cv-12800-TLT.
The federal court’s filing record confirms the October 30 court action. The plaintiffs’ litigation case record reproduces the restrictions imposed on federal officials.
Under the order, DOJ and DHS cannot demand that state or local election officials remove specific registered voters from registration lists, refuse to issue ballots or segregate and withhold ballots solely because the administration alleges that those voters are ineligible.
The order also prohibits threats of criminal prosecution against election workers for refusing such demands or counting ballots in accordance with state and federal election laws. The restrictions remain in place through November 16, with another court hearing scheduled for November 13.
The ruling followed a lawsuit brought by the Service Employees International Union, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the League of United Latin American Citizens and the NAACP.
The organizations challenged federal efforts to pressure election officials over suspected noncitizen voting. Earlier in October, the Justice Department had demanded that California officials set aside ballots associated with approximately 20,000 registered voters whose eligibility the administration questioned.
California officials disputed the reliability of the government’s list. On October 28, another federal judge rejected the administration’s request to force California to separate the disputed ballots. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals also rejected an emergency request on October 30, finding insufficient grounds for the requested intervention.
The new restraining order goes further by directly restricting DOJ and DHS communications and demands involving election administration. Thompson additionally directed federal officials to notify affected state and local governments that earlier demands and prosecution threats covered by the order had been blocked.
The Justice Department must also inform the court about pending search warrant applications, grand jury subpoenas and other demands involving election materials tied to federal lists of allegedly ineligible voters.
The administration has defended its election-related investigations as efforts to enforce federal prohibitions against noncitizen voting. The court’s emergency order does not eliminate those laws or permanently resolve the underlying lawsuit.
In my assessment, the immediate significance is the distinction between investigating potentially unlawful voting and threatening election workers who are following established election procedures. The court has temporarily restricted the latter conduct while the legal challenge continues.
The order provides immediate legal protection for election officials against the specified federal demands during the final days of voting and the subsequent counting process. It does not establish that every disputed voter is eligible or decide the ultimate legality of every federal investigation.
The November 13 hearing will be the next scheduled opportunity for the court to consider the dispute before the temporary order expires on November 16.
