Justice Department asks Supreme Court to order California to set aside about 20,000 disputed ballots

Solicitor General D. John Sauer wrote that the government seeks a "modest remedy," arguing that once the challenged ballots are mixed with others "there is no way to get the challenged ballots back," CBS News reported. California and Los Angeles County officials have said the federal list is unreliable, and lower courts have so far sided with them.

NPR reported that an analysis by UCLA's Voting Rights Project, which got access to the list through a court order, found that 42% of the names do not appear on California's current voter roll. More than 6 million mail ballots had been returned statewide as of Sunday, according to the California secretary of state's office, CBS News reported.

Why it matters: It is not yet known whether the Supreme Court will take up the request, or act before Tuesday's Election Day, NPR reported.