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DOJ urges sanctions for database analysis critical of its noncitizen voting claims

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NICHOLAS RICCARDI Associated Press. (2026, November 1). DOJ urges sanctions for database analysis critical of its noncitizen voting claims. ABC News (US). https://abcnews.com/US/wireStory/justice-department-urges-sanctions-database-analysis-critical-noncitizen-137757433

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ABC News (US) · collected 2026-11-02 · by NICHOLAS RICCARDI Associated Press

Quick Summary

The Justice Department is urging a federal judge to consider contempt charges against the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA) and its lawyers for publishing an analysis that challenges DOJ claims about 20,000 suspected noncitizen voters in California. CHIRLA’s analysis found that over 40% of individuals on the list do not appear in state voter records, and identified many who are likely naturalized citizens. The DOJ argues this disclosure violated Judge Boasberg's order to use the data only for legal standing arguments and suggests referring the matter for possible criminal contempt investigation.
Written by AI on 2026-11-02, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

As of November 1, 2026, an analysis by two UCLA data scientists found that over 40% of names on a Department of Justice (DOJ) list of alleged noncitizens who were flagged as possible illegal voters in California do not appear on the state's voter rolls. The DOJ had demanded that California election officials separate ballots cast by these individuals during vote counting, but multiple judges have rejected this demand as unconstitutional and a threat to democracy.

The analysis also revealed that thousands of U.S. citizens are incorrectly flagged as ineligible to vote on the government’s list. This finding comes amid ongoing litigation between CHIRLA, an immigrant rights group, and the Trump administration over voter eligibility claims ahead of the midterm elections. The DOJ is now urging a federal judge to consider sanctions against CHIRLA for disclosing its analysis, which they claim casts doubt on the accuracy of their data.

The latest developments highlight concerns about potential inaccuracies in the government’s list and their impact on voting rights and election integrity in California.

Written for “DOJ List Of Noncitizen Voters Questioned” on 2026-11-02, grounded in this article and the 5 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The article's own words the score was based on. Each is quoted verbatim and was checked against the article text before being stored, so you can find it in the original.
Reading Leans right (beta estimate) Confidence medium
Leaning: leans right for article 122134 (medium confidence, 1 verified quote) · logged 2026-11-02

Story

📰 DOJ List Of Noncitizen Voters Questioned
Politics · 6 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads leans right and hedges 24% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
The Guardian
⚖️ Leans left further left than this Hedges 6 of 43 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles describe different stages of a broader conflict between election officials and the DOJ regarding voter fraud claims.”
The Straits Times
Hedges 2 of 18 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles describe different aspects of the broader issue: one about losing the initial bid to block votes, and another about urging sanctions for analysis critical of their claims.”
Washington Examiner
⚖️ Leans left further left than this Hedges 1 of 3 claims Outlet record 70/100
“The articles describe different events: one is about DOJ subpoenaing California election officials, while the other is about DOJ urging sanctions for a database analysis critical of its noncitizen voting claims.”
The Straits Times
⚖️ Leans right Hedges 3 of 11 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles describe different actions related to the noncitizen voting investigation: one is about subpoenas issued by Trump DOJ, while the other is about DOJ urging sanctions for an analysis critical of its claims.”
NBC News
⚖️ Leans right Hedges 2 of 19 claims Outlet record 60/100
“The articles describe different actions taken by the DOJ: one involves issuing subpoenas to local election officials, while the other involves urging sanctions against an immigrant rights group for disclosing analysis results.”
CBS News
⚖️ Leans strongly left further left than this Hedges 3 of 16 claims Outlet record 66/100
“Article A describes a court order against DOJ's actions, while Article B discusses DOJ's response to criticism of their claims.”
Times of India
⚖️ Leans left further left than this Hedges 2 of 12 claims Outlet record 59/100
“The articles describe different aspects of the situation: Article A reports on a judge's ruling blocking the Trump administration from threatening election officials, while Article B discusses DOJ urging sanctions against an immigrant rights group for disclosing analysis critical of its noncitizen voting claims.”
The Independent
Hedges 0 of 1 claims Outlet record 59/100
“The articles describe different aspects of related but distinct events: one reports on an analysis of the DOJ list, while the other describes the DOJ's reaction to that analysis and its legal consequences.”
Al Jazeera
⚖️ Leans left further left than this Hedges 4 of 24 claims Outlet record 60/100
BBC News
⚖️ Leans left further left than this Hedges 6 of 17 claims Outlet record 68/100
“The articles describe different aspects of related legal actions involving the Trump administration's claims about noncitizen voting, but they do not report on the exact same incident occurring at the same time.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
21
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
24%
5 of 21 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
Leans right
of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate
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
6
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-11-02 · 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) · 1289 article(s) · 3 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 3 correction(s)

Who wrote this

NICHOLAS RICCARDI Associated Press
3 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 A federal judge in California rejected its demand that election officials there be forced to separate ballots cast by those voters, writing that such last-minute orders could “wreak havoc” on the state's election.
🔮 Republicans have gone after two other Democratic House candidates on meat — hammering Lindsay James in Iowa's 2nd district, an area filled with hog farms, for supporting “meatless May” in a 2020 Facebook post, and Amish Shah in Arizona's 1st district for his longstanding vegetarianism and animal rights activism.
🔮 Skyrocketing diesel prices rattle Republicans as midterms approach Diesel prices are hitting record highs as the Middle East conflict intensifies, affecting American farmers and rural residents Diesel fuel, which powers the global economy and the American heartland, is hitting record prices as the war in the Middle East intensifies, leaving Republican candidates reeling and contemplating extreme steps that economists warn could only increase pain for consumers.
Wire or desk byline, not an individual reporter.
Also by NICHOLAS RICCARDI Associated Press
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.

Topics

California The Justice Department U.S. U.S. District Court WASHINGTON

Subjects

California GPE · 8× The Justice Department ORG · 7× Boasberg PERSON · 3× U.S. GPE · 3× Thompson PERSON · 2× Trump PERSON · 2× U.S. District Court ORG · 2× WASHINGTON GPE · 2× DOJ ORG · 1× James Boasberg PERSON · 1×

Narrative

“The report’s political grandstanding about alleged inaccuracies that purportedly impact California voters generally, or comparisons between the government’s list and the full ‘California voter file,’ has no relevance to whether the particular plaintiffs in this case have standing,” it said.
framing: mixed · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-11-02
🔮 A federal judge in California rejected its demand that election officials there be forced to separate ballots cast by those voters, writing that such last-minute orders could “wreak havoc” on the state's election.

Claims (21 extracted, 5 hedged)

DOJ urges sanctions for database analysis critical of its noncitizen voting claims The Justice Department is urging a federal judge to consider whether to hold an immigrant rights group in contempt of court for disclosing the results of its analysis of a dataset of alleged noncitizens registered to vote in California WASHINGTON -- uncertain
group → urge → California
The Justice Department on Sunday defended the accuracy of a list of what it says are more than 20,000 suspected noncitizens registered to vote in California and suggested that a federal judge consider whether an immigrant rights group and its lawyers should face contempt charges after they published an analysis of the names. uncertain
they → defend → names
On Friday, U.S. District Court Chief Judge James Boasberg allowed the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, or CHIRLA, access to federal government data on 20,000 people the Trump administration alleges are noncitizen voters in California. asserted
administration → allow → California
Boasberg, based in Washington, D.C., ordered the plaintiffs not to disclose any names on the list and use the data only for their arguments about why they have legal standing to challenge the Trump administration's use of it. asserted
they → base → it
On Saturday, attorneys for the immigrant rights group filed court papers revealing that their analysis found more than 40% of the people on the list do not appear in the state's voter file. asserted
% → file → file
It also identified 22 people on the list who were likely naturalized U.S. citizens while saying that thousands more U.S. citizens appeared to be on it, as well. asserted
citizens → identify → it
The Justice Department said in a filing Sunday that the analysis by the immigrant rights group had nothing to do with the group's legal standing and therefore violated Boasberg's order. asserted
analysis → say → order
“The report’s political grandstanding about alleged inaccuracies that purportedly impact California voters generally, or comparisons between the government’s list and the full ‘California voter file,’ has no relevance to whether the particular plaintiffs in this case have standing,” it said. asserted
it → allege → standing
The filing also suggested Boasberg refer the matter to the Justice Department for investigation for possible criminal contempt of court. uncertain
Boasberg → suggest → court
Alberto Lammers, a spokesman for the University of California, Los Angeles' Voting Rights Project, which filed the case and did the data analysis for the immigrant rights group, said in an emailed statement: “Plaintiffs’ counsel and their experts fully complied with the Court’s orders.” asserted
counsel → file → orders
In a separate case, the Justice Department on Sunday also appealed a decision from Friday night by U.S. District Court Judge Trina L. Thompson. asserted
Department → appeal → Thompson
The ruling by the San Francisco-based judge barred the department from demanding that election offices remove possible noncitizens from voter rolls, separate their ballots or threaten legal action. asserted
offices → base → action
The Justice Department has noted that Thompson ruled before the federal government was able to file its initial arguments. asserted
government → note → arguments
Thompson scheduled a Monday hearing on the appeal. asserted
Thompson → schedule → appeal
That case is one of many the Trump administration has lost in its battle over its lists of alleged noncitizen voters. asserted
administration → lose → voters
A federal judge in California rejected its demand that election officials there be forced to separate ballots cast by those voters, writing that such last-minute orders could “wreak havoc” on the state's election. uncertain
orders → reject → election
Two appellate judges agreed. asserted
judges → agree → ?
California election officials also contend the list is riddled with errors and say they have no way to do the painstaking work required by law to remove voters from the rolls in the days before the election. asserted
they → contend → election
People attest to being U.S. citizens when they register to vote and risk felony prosecution if they cast a ballot when they are not eligible. asserted
they → attest → ballot
The administration has said its list was carefully compiled from the state's own voter registration data and compared to federal citizenship records. asserted
list → say → records
The Justice Department issued a series of subpoenas for election offices in California and warned election officials who knowingly let noncitizens vote that they could face criminal charges. uncertain
they → issue → charges
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