Justice Department Issues Grand Jury Subpoenas to California Election Officials

The Justice Department has issued grand jury subpoenas to election officials in California as part of its investigation into the state's voter rolls, according to multiple sources who spoke with ABC News. In its report, ABC News said the subpoenas were issued to local election officials.

CBS News reported separately that the Justice Department has issued grand jury subpoenas to California officials. In its report, CBS News described the subpoenas as escalating a dispute over federal allegations that the state "may have as many as 20,000 non-citizens registered to vote."

The CBS News headline characterized the action as an expansion of the department's voting probe. The summary of that report does not say when the allegations were first made, and it attributes them only to the federal government.

The two summaries differ on who received the subpoenas. ABC News specified local election officials, while CBS News referred more broadly to California officials. Neither summary reconciles the two descriptions, and neither says whether the recipients are the same individuals or offices.

The summaries also do not report how California officials have responded to the subpoenas, what records the subpoenas request, or what position state officials have taken on the federal allegations. ABC News attributed its account to multiple sources without naming them in its summary, and the CBS News summary does not identify its sourcing for the subpoenas.

Sources: ABC News: DOJ issues grand jury subpoenas to election officials in California; CBS News: California officials face grand jury subpoenas as DOJ expands voting probe.