Voter Roll: Butte County clerk rejects DOJ list

Butte County voters will see no immediate change to their ballots after the local clerk-recorder refused to act on a federal demand letter regarding noncitizen voters. Keaton Denlay, the clerk-recorder and registrar of voters, said he received the paperwork on Friday afternoon but decided not to comply with the instructions inside.

A person identifying himself as a Department of Homeland Security agent delivered the package to Denlay's office at approximately 3:30 p.m. on Friday, October 23. The envelope contained a demand letter from the Department of Justice, two declarations, and a two-page list of names. Denlay noted the letter misspelled his name as Danlay.

The Justice Department letter claimed the list included 47 likely aliens who were unlawfully registered. It requested additional details, such as Social Security numbers, and instructed the county to set aside ballots from individuals whose citizenship could not be confirmed until their status was settled. The document set a 48-hour deadline for compliance.

Denlay found discrepancies between the letter's summary and the attached data. The two pages of the list were identical copies containing 46 names rather than the stated 47. One name appeared twice on the document. Of the 45 distinct names listed, 32 were not on the Butte County active voter rolls and had never received ballots.

Seven additional names lacked sufficient information, including full names, addresses, or dates of birth, to allow for a proper check against county records. This left six names that might have been ineligible according to the Department of Justice. Denlay described the data as a poorly formatted Excel spreadsheet with missing and jumbled information.

In a statement posted on the county website, Denlay cited California law, which places the burden on a challenger to establish extraordinary proof of the validity of the challenge at the time it is made. He wrote that the Justice Department did not meet that burden due to the list's inaccuracy and lack of detail. He noted that he never received a digital copy of the spreadsheet or further contact from the department.

Denlay reviewed the records himself to keep staff focused on election duties. Speaking in an interview on Wednesday, October 28, he called the threats absurd and said he was not losing any sleep over the situation. He described a rollercoaster of emotions after receiving the letter, stating there was not any actionable information for him there.

The incident is part of a wider push by the Department of Justice in the final weeks of the midterm elections. The department has alleged that 20,000 California voters are likely noncitizens and has sued to stop those ballots from being counted. State officials reject the claim, arguing the data is unreliable and that the federal government lacks authority to intervene in this manner.

Other counties received similar letters. Francisco Diaz, the registrar of voters in San Benito County, said his office received a list of 33 names and found some were not registered there. He stated, We will not be intimidated by agents with guns for simply doing our jobs. In Orange County, the registrar did not initially see the letter because it was delivered to the clerk-recorder's office, which handles marriage licenses and property deeds.

The letter was signed by Eric Grant, the U.S. attorney for the eastern district of California. A spokesperson for his office, Lauren Horwood, declined to comment on Denlay's statement. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson did not respond to an inquiry. Legal experts have said the threats appear designed to intimidate and that California officials acted lawfully in declining to comply.