11 green card holders arrested in California for allegedly registering to vote illegally
Federal prosecutors on Monday, 15 days before midterm elections, announced the arrest of 11 individuals living in California accused of allegedly illegally registering to vote in U.S. federal elections despite their status as noncitizens.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the arrests are part of "Operation Protect the Vote," described as an effort to "root out fraud in U.S. elections and protect electoral integrity." A total of 28 individuals have been charged as part of the operation.
All 28 are lawful permanent residents, or green card holders, the DOJ said.
"Although [lawful permanent residents] have legal immigration status in the United States, they are not U.S. citizens and are not permitted to vote in U.S. elections," the DOJ said in a news release.
During a news conference in downtown Los Angeles, Acting United States Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter pointed to a list of more than 20,000 "likely noncitizens" compiled by the DOJ who are registered to vote in California, saying all 28 defendants have appeared on that list. McCotter and First Assistant United States Attorney Bill Essayli claim the state of California has refused to look at or address that list.
"Today's arrests prove what we have been saying," said First Assistant United States Attorney Bill Essayli. "California is mailing ballots to noncitizens, and they are refusing to comply with federal law, which makes it a crime for noncitizens to vote."
Not all of the 28 individuals arrested have voted in previous elections, Essayli said.
The press office for California Gov. Gavin Newsom pushed back against the DOJ's assertion that the state was aiding in "widespread voter fraud" by pointing out that officials said fewer than 120 people have been charged with such crimes nationwide.
"The Trump [administration] completely upends their "widespread voter fraud" claims by admitting they have only charged 113 people across 20 states," Newsom's office said in a post to X.
The Trump administration has made election security a priority since the president retook office in January of 2025, repeating false claims that he won the 2020 election.
A 60 Minutes report Sunday indicated that some government officials are worried that the administration's push for election integrity is creating "distrust" in America's system.
California Secretary of State Shirley Weber has questioned the accuracy of the DOJ's list of the 20,000 alleged noncitizens who are registered to vote in the state.
"The USDOJ's relentless efforts to unlawfully gain access to states' protected voter data and purge voter rolls serve only to cause chaos and fuel public distrust in our elections," Weber said. "California has robust state law requirements that only U.S. citizens can register to vote and that any non-eligible registrants are removed from the State's voter rolls."