...
By Billal Rahman
Immigration Reporter
0
Share
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
See more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
The Justice Department announced charges Monday involving 63 people accused of illegal voting, fraudulent voter registration, and related offenses, unveiling the cases one day before the 2026 midterm elections.
Federal prosecutors accused dozens of noncitizens of illegally voting, claiming U.S. citizenship to register and concealing voting histories while seeking naturalization.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) said Monday it had charged 195 noncitizens across 25 states with illegal voting and registration offenses during the previous nine weeks. It said 239 people had been charged with voting fraud-related offenses since the current administration took office. The department’s release did not provide a historical comparison supporting its description of the cases as the largest recent surge, and the figures represent charges rather than convictions.
Read More on News
...
The Trump administration has made election integrity and noncitizen voting a priority ahead of the 2026 midterms, arguing that tougher enforcement is needed to protect elections. Voting rights advocates and election experts have long said noncitizen voting is rare, with the Heritage Foundation’s election-fraud database recording 24 cases from 2003 through 2023.
The DOJ’s crackdown has raised questions about the scale of noncitizen voting, the political timing of the prosecutions and their impact on immigrant communities. With noncitizen voting considered rare, critics may question whether the figures justify claims of a surge in voter fraud and risk blurring the line between allegations and proven offenses.
Lawful permanent residents, commonly known as green card holders, can live and work permanently in the United States but cannot vote in federal elections, though some jurisdictions allow noncitizens to vote in certain local elections.
Most of the 63 defendants in Monday's announcement were described as lawful permanent residents accused of voting despite not being U.S. citizens. Four were identified by the department as immigrants living in the country illegally. The announced charges are accusations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
View content
https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/30783428/
North Carolina accounted for the largest share, with 18 defendants, followed by California with 12, Tennessee with seven, and Texas and Pennsylvania with five each. The remaining cases were spread across 10 states. Individual prosecutions were also announced in Arkansas, Georgia, Maryland, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Utah and Wisconsin.
Some defendants are accused of voting once, while others allegedly participated in multiple elections over several years. Authorities accused Elizabeth Margaret Crudup, a Kenyan national and lawful permanent resident in North Carolina, of voting in nine general elections and nine primaries between 2008 and 2026.
Prosecutors say Gregory Eugene Wade, a 64-year-old Bermudan national and green card holder, registered in North Carolina in 2000 and voted in 12 general elections through 2024, as well as two primaries.
In California, DOJ alleges Sirgalahad Camua, a 43-year-old Filipino national and green card holder, registered to vote in 2009 by falsely claiming U.S. citizenship and later cast mail ballots in 2020, 2024 and 2026. Prosecutors say he subsequently denied ever claiming citizenship or registering to vote when he applied for naturalization in 2025.
In New Mexico, prosecutors charged a Maryland man, Robert Glenn Johnson, with submitting a voter registration application that allegedly falsely identified him as a New Mexico resident. In California, several lawful permanent residents were charged with making false statements on naturalization applications after allegedly denying that they had registered or voted.
...
"Today’s announcement marks the largest surge of voter-fraud arrests since President Trump returned to office," Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a press release. "These foreign nationals allegedly took advantage of the trust of the American people and flouted the laws that govern our nation’s elections. This Department of Justice will continue investigating and prosecuting voter fraud to restore confidence in our electoral system."
The Justice Department’s Election Crimes Branch oversees federal investigations into voting fraud and other election offenses. Election administration itself is largely handled by state and local officials, with federal guidance recommending safeguards including equipment testing, secure chains of custody and post-election audits.
The prosecutions were announced as voters prepared to decide control of Congress ahead of the November 3 midterms. All 435 House seats and about one-third of the Senate are contested during midterm election cycles.
Election administration is primarily handled by state and local officials rather than the federal government.
Newsweek’s reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here. Contact Newsweek editors for this story: Robert Greenall and Ben Kelly
View 0 Comments
Submit Correction
View Editorial & AI Guidelines