DOJ Sues Orange County Registrar Over Concealed Noncitizen Voter Records

The U.S. Justice Department has sued the Orange County Registrar of Voters, Robert Page, accusing him of failing to provide unredacted records on non-citizens unlawfully registered to vote and receiving ballots. The DOJ claims Page redacted key identifying information citing California privacy laws, obstructing federal efforts to verify and remove ineligible voters as mandated by federal election laws and President Donald Trump's 2025 executive order aimed at tightening election integrity. Orange County officials argue they have identified and removed 17 ineligible voters over five years and are complying with state privacy laws, with some officials expressing frustration over what they perceive as political motives behind the DOJ's intervention. The DOJ lawsuit was prompted by a complaint that a non-citizen in Orange County received an unsolicited mail-in ballot, raising concerns about the accuracy of voter rolls. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon emphasized that voting by non-citizens is a federal crime and stressed the importance of transparency to ensure election security. Voting rights advocates criticize the DOJ's actions as voter suppression, asserting that documented cases of non-citizen voting are rare.