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LA officials say DOJ noncitizen list includes substantial US-born share

Court filings in California describe a 200-person sample of the Justice Department's roughly 20,000-name list, and officials question its reliability.

Updated Oct 21, 2026 · 18:16 UTC4 reports

The short version

  • The Justice Department gave Los Angeles election officials a list of about 20,000 suspected non-citizens.[NPR · The Guardian · ABC News]
  • Only about 7,000 of those names had Los Angeles County addresses, according to a court filing.[NPR · The Guardian]
  • County officials' 200-person sample found 38.9% of reported birthplaces indicated US birth, though the total affected is unclear.[NPR · The Guardian]
  • Acting Deputy Attorney General R Trent McCotter acknowledged some listed people could be citizens, while DOJ spokesperson Kiersten Pels accused California of willful blindness.[NPR · The Guardian]

Key facts

  • The Justice Department provided Los Angeles election officials with a list of about 20,000 suspected non-citizens.[NPR · The Guardian · ABC News]
  • Los Angeles officials analyzed a sample of 200 people from the list and reported that 38.9% of those with meaningfully reported birthplace information indicated they were born in the United States.[NPR · The Guardian]
  • Only about 7,000 of the 20,000 names had an address in Los Angeles County, according to a court filing.[NPR · The Guardian]
  • Acting Deputy Attorney General R Trent McCotter acknowledged at a press conference that there could be citizens on the list.[NPR · The Guardian · ABC News]
  • DOJ spokesperson Kiersten Pels said California cannot facilitate the violation of federal law and accused the state of willful blindness.[The Guardian · ABC News]

What remains uncertain

  • It is unclear how many people the 38.9% birthplace figure represents, and the sample analysis is described as preliminary.[NPR · The Guardian · ABC News]
  • The list's reliability is disputed: county officials question its accuracy, and DOJ's acting deputy attorney general acknowledged possible errors.[NPR · The Guardian · ABC News]

Sources

Outlet counts describe coverage, not independent confirmation. Reports may share a wire service or original source.