Federal Prosecutors Charged 28 Green-Card Holders in California Over Voter Registration and Voting. The Secretary of State Says She Was Given No Evidence.
On Oct. 19, 2026, the Justice Department announced criminal charges against 28 foreign nationals in California, all of them lawful permanent residents, over voter registration and voting. At least 11 were arrested Monday; the rest were still to be taken into custody, per the reporting.
Some media summaries describe all 28 as arrested. Not yet. All 28 are presumed innocent, and the charges are allegations.
The cases arrive 15 days before Election Day and in the middle of a federal-state fight over a list of about 20,000 California registrants DOJ says are likely noncitizens. Here is what is documented, and what California’s officials say.
- 28chargedforeign nationals, all lawful permanent residents; at least 11 arrested Oct. 19 — Inquirer/AP; TPM
- 22+allegedly votedat least 22 are accused of casting ballots, and at least 8 of voting more than once, some in the 2026 primary — AP via Yahoo
- ~20,000names on DOJ's listregistrants the Justice Department flagged as likely noncitizens and shared with California officials the week before — PBS NewsHour
- 1 in 820,000scale28 charged against more than 23 million registered California voters, by our arithmetic; Bonta called the arrests "a drop in the bucket" — TPM
Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter of the Trump administration said “This Department of Justice will not look the other way while noncitizens vote in federal elections.” First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli, a Trump administration appointee, announcing the Central District’s cases, said “This is not a conspiracy theory.” The Justice Department has called the sweep “Operation Protect the Vote,” per the Inquirer.
The charges, per the reporting, are felony fraudulent voter registration and false statements on naturalization applications (up to five years) and, for some, the misdemeanor of illegal voting by noncitizens (up to one year). Six Eastern District defendants face the misdemeanor, per AP, and ABC30 reports that three Fresno County residents are among those charged. We could not retrieve the DOJ release or the charging documents, so we do not cite specific statutes.
DHS cross-referenced California’s voter-roll data against federal immigration records and produced a list of about 20,000 registrants DOJ describes as likely noncitizens. DOJ gave the list to California officials the week before the charges and sued the state over the voter data, per the Inquirer and PBS. The DOJ release, as excerpted by Gateway Pundit, says the 28 were charged on the basis of that list.
One arrestee, a 72-year-old Belize-born man from Commerce, is accused of voting in four elections between 2020 and 2024, per the Inquirer. Nationalities and counties for most defendants have not been published.
California Secretary of State Shirley Weber (D-CA) says DOJ has provided no evidence, per the Inquirer. Attorney General Rob Bonta (D-CA) called the arrests “a drop in the bucket” of more than 23 million registered voters, per TPM, and his office said, per AP, that the charges are not evidence of widespread voter fraud even if the allegations are true. Los Angeles County Registrar Dean Logan said it is best for the matter to be addressed in court. Fresno County’s registrar, James Kus, told ABC30 he has had “zero contact” from the Justice Department.
“There may be some names on there who, it turns out ultimately are citizens. We're not perfect.”
Trent McCotter, Acting Deputy Attorney General, on the 20,000-name list — Fox LA
McCotter’s concession matters. DOJ is not claiming that every name on its list is a noncitizen, and California’s officials say DOJ has not shown the list is accurate. The defendants, by contrast, are individually charged, and the courts will test each case.
Trent McCotter — Acting Deputy Attorney General in the Trump administration; wrote the Oct. 16 letter to Los Angeles County warning of criminal exposure for ignoring a federal crime.
Bill Essayli — First Assistant U.S. Attorney, Central District of California, Trump administration; announced the charges.
Shirley Weber (D-CA) — California Secretary of State; says DOJ gave no evidence.
Rob Bonta (D-CA) — California Attorney General; calls the cases a drop in the bucket.
Dean Logan — Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder; says to settle it in court.
Twenty-eight prosecutions are 28 prosecutions. They do not, alone, measure how common noncitizen registration is, and neither DOJ’s totals nor its critics’ establish that. The Justice Department says it has charged 113 people in 20 states with election offenses, per the Inquirer. What the California cases do show is a concrete test: each defendant’s registration, citizenship status and ballot history will be examined in court, and the 20,000-name list will be judged by how many of its names survive that scrutiny.
Prop 39, California’s voter ID and citizenship-verification measure, is on the ballot, per Fox LA. Election Day is Nov. 3.
DOJ has charged 28 lawful permanent residents in California over voter registration and voting; 11 are in custody and all are presumed innocent. The cases came from a 20,000-name list DOJ describes as likely noncitizens, which California’s Democratic officials say was never backed by evidence. DOJ’s own deputy attorney general concedes some names may be citizens.
