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U.S. editionThe New York Times and the Los Angeles Times reported that federal prosecutors charged 28 people in California on Oct. 19 with illegal registration or voting. The Guardian and NPR said all are green card holders. ABC7 Los Angeles reported that at least 11 were in custody Monday under Operation Protect the Vote. KQED said cases were filed in all four federal districts, 13 of them in the Central District. CalMatters reported that some defendants are charged with lying on citizenship applications because their alleged votes are too old to prosecute. CalMatters and KQED reported that all 28 are on a Justice Department list of up to 20,000 registrants it wants excluded from the count. Rob Bonta's office called the group a tiny fraction of about 23 million voters.
Noncitizen voting is a federal crime, and it can also cost a green card holder legal status and lead to deportation. The cases also serve as evidence in the department's separate lawsuit seeking to block ballots from thousands of California registrants, so they matter beyond the 28 defendants.
If you are a naturalized citizen or a green card holder, check your registration status with your county elections office. Only citizens may register for federal elections; lawful permanent residents may not, even if a form or a DMV clerk suggested otherwise.
The administration and Trump, in his Truth Social post, present the arrests as proof that noncitizen voting is real and that California's rolls need federal scrutiny. On that view, prosecuting cases before the Nov. 3 vote deters others and protects legitimate ballots.
Bonta's office and election experts quoted by CalMatters say 28 cases among about 23 million voters show fraud is rare, not widespread. Votebeat found no sign of organized cheating, and critics say the timing, weeks before the midterms, is meant to cast doubt on California's count.
What is confirmed: 28 people charged, at least 11 in custody, all on the department's list of 20,000. What is not: how many actually voted, and whether any vote changed any result. Watch whether a judge acts on the lawsuit over the 20,000 ballots before counting begins.
The New York Times (DOJ charges 28, Oct. 19) · Los Angeles Times (arrests and reactions, Oct. 19) · The Guardian (green card holders charged, Oct. 19) · PBS NewsHour (foreign nationals charged, Oct. 19)
Justice Department charges 28 California green card holders with illegal voting two weeks before Election DayJustice Department charges 28 California green card holders with illegal voting two weeks before Election Day
Federal prosecutors filed cases in all four of California's federal districts on Monday, Oct. 19, as the administration presses a wider fight with the state over its voter rolls.
Federal prosecutors charged 28 people across California on Monday, Oct. 19, with illegally registering to vote or casting ballots while not U.S. citizens, The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times reported. The Guardian and NPR said the defendants are lawful permanent residents, or green card holders. ABC7 Los Angeles reported that the sweep is part of a Justice Department effort called Operation Protect the Vote, that arrests began early Monday and that at least 11 people were in custody by the afternoon, citing an assistant U.S. attorney. According to KQED, the cases were filed in all four federal districts in the state, with 13 in the Central District, which covers Los Angeles. PBS NewsHour described the defendants as foreign nationals from several countries. CalMatters reported that some of the alleged votes are so old that they fall outside the statute of limitations, so prosecutors charged those defendants with lying about their voting history on more recent citizenship applications. President Trump celebrated the arrests in a post on Truth Social on Monday.
The charges arrive days after the Justice Department sued to stop California from counting ballots cast by as many as 20,000 registrants it suspects are not citizens, CalMatters and KQED reported, and a department official said all 28 defendants are on that list. The Los Angeles Times reported that several of those arrested said they were shocked and confused, and some told the paper they had believed they were allowed to register. The office of California Attorney General Rob Bonta said the 28 people represent a tiny fraction of the state's roughly 23 million registered voters, CalMatters reported. David Becker of the Center for Election Innovation & Research told CalMatters the cases amount to about 0.0001% of California voters. Votebeat, which reviewed federal cases earlier this fall, reported finding no sign of organized efforts to cheat in U.S. elections. Early voting is underway in California ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections. Whether any of the 28 cast a ballot that affected a result has not been established.