Professor Johnson Talks to Bee About Disputed DOJ List of Noncitizen Voters

Professor Emeritus Kevin R. Johnson spoke to the Sacramento Bee for an Oct. 26 story about the Trump administration’s list of people it says might be noncitizens improperly registered to vote.

The story points out that the list is the subject of many legal cases that could affect the administration of elections in California on Tuesday, Nov. 3. 

Federal officials have acknowledged the list might not be accurate. Of the 20,000 people it lists in California, the U.S. Department of Justice has charged 28 with registering to vote as noncitizens.

"The charges … at best show a statistically small problem in millions of votes," Johnson told the Bee. "Any few errors cannot justify the broad and intrusive injunctive relief sought by the U.S. government, such as setting aside the votes of the 20,000 people on the list."

Kevin R. Johnson is a distinguished professor of law and Chicanx Studies emeritus and director of the Aoki Center. He is the former Mabie/Apallas Professor of Public Interest Law and he served as dean of UC Davis Law from 2008 to 2024. Johnson is an internationally recognized scholar in the fields of immigration law and policy, refugee law and civil rights.