US Domestic — 2026-11-02

Federal Judge Blocks DOJ and DHS From Threatening Election Workers With Criminal Prosecution Before Midterms

BLUFJudge Thompson's restraining order is very unlikely to be stayed or vacated by the Ninth Circuit before November 9, leaving DOJ unable to pressure election workers through Election Day.

U.S. District Judge Trina Thompson issued a temporary restraining order Friday barring the Justice and Homeland Security departments from threatening election workers with prosecution, or demanding they remove, withhold or not count ballots, based solely on allegations that voters are ineligible 12. She found the departments likely violated the Voting Rights Act's intimidation provision and exceeded their authority, in a suit filed Thursday by unions and the NAACP 34. The order requires disclosure of pending warrant applications and subpoenas, and expires November 16 with a hearing set for November 13 13. Democracy Docket reported that it expires after Election Day, a divergence from CBS 4. The DOJ told CBS and Fox it was reviewing the order, called it a "two-track system of justice," and Democracy Docket reported it appealed to the Ninth Circuit Saturday 234.

Analysis
Confidence is moderate: four outlets across center, right and left editorial lines agree on the order's terms and the DOJ appeal, but none cites the court document and no appellate briefing schedule is visible. The Ninth Circuit is very unlikely to stay or vacate Judge Thompson's temporary restraining order, in whole or in part, by November 9. The Ninth Circuit already refused DOJ's request on the California ballots and left DHS field-operation limits in place Friday. That contrasts with June, when DOJ's election-crimes capacity looked hollowed out, before it turned to aggressive threats and litigation. The appeal may aim less at winning a stay than at building a record that the order issued without hearing the government, shaping the November 13 hearing. If the order stands, county election officials can keep processing flagged ballots without fear of prosecution. A stay would force them to weigh DOJ's threats again days before certification.

4 sources