Reckless and Irresponsible: Federal Investigation into California Election Workers Has No Basis in Fact
WASHINGTON – Democratic Association of Secretaries of State (DASS) Chair Cisco Aguilar released the following statement following media reports that the Department of Justice has apparently directed prospectors into criminal subpoenas of state and local election officials in California.
“Make no mistake, the American people choose our leaders and will not be silenced. Election workers are members of our communities who will continue to defend the Constitution, faithfully count our votes, and will not be intimidated. Any federal prosecutors who disregard their oath of office and go along with this sham investigation should be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.
“The Federal government has made numerous assertions about our voting system that have turned out not to be true this year, because Donald Trump and his allies will do anything to avoid being held accountable. They need an excuse for losing the trust and votes of the American people. Americans are fed up with high gas prices and high costs of living driven by Donald Trump’s unnecessary war in the Middle East, and they are coming out in record numbers to hold Washington accountable.”
Background:
ABC News: “Trump has a long history of crying foul in contests he doesn’t win” … in 2016, Trump claimed Sen. Ted Cruz committed fraud during the Iowa Caucus. “Trump has a long history of crying foul in contests he doesn’t win, including previously saying that the ‘Emmys are all politics’ after his reality TV show, ‘The Apprentice,’ never won an award. He also labeled then-President Barack Obama’s 2012 reelection ‘a total sham.’ He leaned on that same tactic in 2016 during the GOP primaries, including the Iowa and Colorado caucuses, which he lost to Cruz. ‘Based on the fraud committed by Senator Ted Cruz during the Iowa Caucus, either a new election should take place or Cruz results nullified,’ Trump tweeted that year without providing evidence.” [ABC News, 9/8/22]
Democracy Docket: “The administration has not presented an iota of evidence,” In September 2026, Democracy Docket reported, “throughout the legal battles over the USPS rule, the administration has not presented an iota of evidence that fraud would flourish absent the new restrictions.” It further notes that “across the countless legal filings in the many lawsuits challenging Trump’s order and USPS’s subsequent rules, the Department of Justice has repeatedly failed to provide evidence backing the central claim behind them: that noncitizen voting and mail ballot fraud are real, substantial problems that must be addressed by federal government intervention.” [Democracy Docket, 9.16.26]
Roll Call: “None of [Trump’s] claims of US election fraud have been substantiated.” In July 2026, Roll Call published an article, highlighting a Factba.se analysis: “Trump has asserted almost 3,000 times since the late 1980s that voter fraud is widespread…despite his drumbeat, none of his claims of US election fraud have been substantiated.” [Roll Call, 7.17.26]
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October 30, 2026
