The Justice Department escalates its campaign against alleged noncitizen voting in California, charging 28 people and demanding counties set aside ballots.

The Justice Department charged 28 lawful permanent residents in California with unlawful voting and election-related crimes, all drawn from a list of about 20,000 registrants federal agencies identified as likely noncitizens. The DOJ sued California and Los Angeles County to block counting of those ballots, then sent letters to counties demanding they identify and set aside suspected noncitizen ballots within 48 hours and warning of criminal liability. California officials called the federal data unreliable and the demands an election interference stunt.