A US Federal judge has barred the Justice Department from threatening to prosecute state and local election officials who refuse to comply with the Trump administration's demands concerning alleged non-citizen voters.
US District Judge Trina Thompson issued the temporary restraining order on Friday, ruling that the administration had gone too far in threatening legal action against officials who did not cooperate with its election-related initiatives.
The order comes days before the US midterm elections, which will determine control of Congress, where Republicans currently hold narrow majorities in both the House of Representatives and Senate.
Thompson, who was appointed by former president Joe Biden, also ordered the administration to stop demanding that local election officials remove voters from state registration rolls, reject ballots from specific voters or segregate ballots based on a federal list of alleged non-citizen voters.
Reuters reported n Saturday that in her ruling, Thompson said election officials and workers must be allowed to carry out their duties in accordance with federal law and established election procedures.
She said the proximity of the elections and the public interest in ensuring the integrity of election administration weighed in favour of the plaintiffs, who included election workers' unions and other groups.
The Justice Department had not immediately commented on the ruling.
The Trump administration has stepped up federal scrutiny of election procedures in the months leading up to the midterms, pressing states to provide voter-registration data and arguing that stricter oversight is necessary to safeguard election security and public confidence.
However, the moves have drawn criticism from political experts and Democratic as well as some Republican election officials, who have raised concerns about federal interference in state-administered elections.
Some election officials have also told Reuters they were preparing for potential federal interference during the midterm polls.
President Donald Trump has previously made false claims about election fraud, including refusing to acknowledge his defeat in the 2020 presidential election. - October 31, 2026
