The Department of Justice says it is stepping up enforcement against noncitizens accused of illegally registering to vote or casting ballots in federal elections. In recent months, prosecutors have brought cases involving people from several countries, including Mexico, the Philippines, Pakistan, Australia, Canada, China, Brazil, Cuba, and Haiti.
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From Just the News:
Each has been charged in the last year with illegally voting in U.S. federal elections as foreigners, part of a sudden wave of prosecutions led by the Trump Justice Department for a crime that used to be among the rarest in the federal court system.
The Trump Justice Department has secured about two dozen non-citizens voting arrests, prosecutions or convictions in the last few months alone, with about another 90 more cases under investigation, officials told Just the News. And all 50 states were sent notices this month that election officials can and will be prosecuted too if they allow non-citizens to vote.
“It isn’t just bad policy to let non-citizens vote in federal elections, it’s a crime. And this Department of Justice will intend to prosecute that crime if these election officials, having been informed that they are non-citizens on the voter rolls, knowingly allow those people to vote, enable their enrollment on the voter rolls, are passive in the face of this knowledge, etc. This is not some idle threat,” Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon told the Just the News, No Noise television show.
The issue has long been debated in Washington. Some groups argue cases of noncitizen voting are rare. Others contend the problem is larger than previously understood and point to recent prosecutions as evidence that voter rolls need closer review.
Federal law allows only U.S. citizens to vote in federal elections. However, some cities and states permit certain noncitizens to vote in local elections. Several of the recent federal cases involve individuals who allegedly voted in presidential or congressional elections, where citizenship is required by law. Some defendants have pleaded guilty, while other cases remain pending.
In one Michigan case, a Chinese student was charged after allegedly registering and voting in the 2024 election. While initially denying such incidents, Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson later acknowledged her office had identified 15 credible cases of noncitizens voting in the 2024 election.
The Justice Department also says it is working with states to review voter registration lists. Some states have cooperated with those efforts, while others are challenging the federal government’s requests in court. DOJ officials believe additional reviews may uncover more ineligible registrations, although the total number has not been independently verified. Court challenges over access to voter rolls are still ongoing.
For us, election integrity is about both justice and truth. Every lawful vote should be protected, and every election should be conducted fairly and according to the law. As these investigations continue, let us pray for honesty, wisdom, and accountability among public officials, while asking God to strengthen confidence in the nation’s election process.
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(Excerpt from Just the News. Photo Credit: CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1907019)
