Federal prosecutors in Washington state have asked election officials to set aside ballots from 400 people suspected of being noncitizens registered to vote, citing potential violations of election law. The request, made in a letter to Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs on November 1, comes just days before the November 3 midterm elections.
The Justice Department’s letter, signed by prosecutors Neil Floyd and Pete Serrano, urged Hobbs to not count ballots from the listed individuals until their citizenship status could be verified. The prosecutors cited concerns over the state’s voter registration system, which they argued may have allowed noncitizens to register despite state laws requiring citizenship.
Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs rejected the federal list, calling it “not reliable” in a response sent Wednesday. Hobbs stated that a preliminary review found many individuals on the list are U.S. citizens, while others were either not currently registered to vote or had inactive registrations. He warned that acting on the unverified list could result in “wrongful disenfranchisement” and may violate state and federal law.
The federal prosecutors’ letter follows a broader Justice Department investigation into potential noncitizen voter registration across multiple states. Earlier this year, federal officials identified more than 20,000 likely noncitizens on California voter rolls, with a significant number located in Los Angeles County. The findings have raised concerns among election integrity advocates, who argue that automatic voter registration systems may inadvertently register noncitizens.
Washington’s voter registration system operates differently from California’s. In Washington, automatic voter registration is tied to transactions requiring proof of citizenship, such as obtaining an enhanced driver’s license or ID. California, by contrast, automatically registers eligible voters who interact with the DMV unless they opt out. Both states require U.S. citizenship to register to vote.
Election integrity expert J. Christian Adams, president of the Public Interest Legal Foundation, criticized Washington and California’s systems, stating that noncitizens are “getting on the rolls all over the country through the motor voter program.” Adams argued that states’ refusal to use federal verification tools contributes to the issue.
Hobbs countered that the federal list lacks “individualized proof of ineligibility” and that election officials would be “irresponsible and illegal” to exclude ballots based on the unverified data. He emphasized that the state’s voter registration system includes safeguards to prevent noncitizen registration and that the federal list may contain “several glaring deficiencies.”
The dispute highlights ongoing tensions over voter registration accuracy and the role of federal oversight in state election processes. With early voting underway and over 1.3 million mail ballots already returned in Washington, the timing of the federal request has intensified scrutiny of the state’s election procedures.