India, Oct. 16 -- The legal battleground surrounding the upcoming midterm elections expanded dramatically as the US Department of Justice filed a formal lawsuit against the state of California, demanding an emergency federal injunction to prevent election officials from tabulating mail-in ballots cast by more than 20,000 registered voters.

Federal prosecutors allege that the targeted individuals are unlawfully registered non-citizens who should be immediately excluded from active voter rolls. The high-stakes legal filing, submitted just weeks before election day, represents an aggressive federal intervention into state-administered voting procedures, reigniting intense partisan friction over election integrity, administrative oversight, ...