The U.S. Justice Department on Thursday issued subpoenas to California officials in an escalation of its scrutiny of local election administration. The subpoenas were being issued by all four U.S. attorneys in California, according to a person familiar with the matter who insisted on anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation. The move follows a federal judge’s appointment of a special master earlier Thursday to evaluate claims by the Trump administration that California has about 20,000 noncitizens on its voter rolls, less than 24 hours after he rejected the Justice Department’s demand that California sequester the ballots until citizenship can be verified.
The Justice Department also is escalating a criminal investigation over an Alaska Senate candidate who shares a name with the Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan, issuing a raft of new grand jury subpoenas, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press on Thursday. The subpoenas were issued after The New York Times reported that Democratic candidate Mary Peltola’s campaign appeared to be involved in recruiting Dan J. Sullivan Jr. as part of an alleged effort to confuse voters in the hotly contested race.
Trump, meanwhile, campaigned in South Carolina for the second time this month to rally Republican support for Darline Graham as she spends the final days of the midterm election trying to fend off a robust challenge from Democrat Annie Andrews for a critical U.S. Senate seat. Andrews has mounted an unexpectedly competitive race against Graham.
With a handful of campaign stops left on Trump’s schedule, the president converted a planned event in Kansas into a virtual tele-rally. Trump plans to hold more than 20 tele-rallies before Tuesday’s Election Day, according to the White House.