Justice Department Charges 48 Noncitizens in Five States With Election Crimes

The Justice Department announced charges on Monday involving 48 noncitizens accused of illegal voting, fraudulent voter registration and related election crimes in five states.

Forty-seven of the 48 are lawful permanent residents who may not vote in federal elections. The remaining defendant, Alfredo Santiesteban, 73, a Cuban national living in Philadelphia, is described by the department as being in the country illegally. Prosecutors accuse him of voting in the November 5, 2024 presidential election.

California holds 28 of the cases

California accounts for 28 of the 48 cases, brought under Operation Protect the Vote, a joint effort by the state's four U.S. Attorney's offices. Ciaran McEvoy, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles, said all 28 California defendants appear on the federal list of more than 20,000 people the government believes are likely noncitizens who were sent vote-by-mail ballots. Eighteen of the California defendants have been arrested and have appeared in court, and the others are expected to surrender.

One California defendant, Omar Alexander Munoz, 72, of Commerce, is accused of registering to vote in 2019 and voting in 2020, twice in 2022 and in 2024, then answering no on his citizenship application when asked whether he had ever registered or voted.

"Every illegal vote cancels out the vote of a lawful American citizen," said Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter.

Cases in four other states

Pennsylvania has nine defendants, Florida six, New York four and Nevada one. The Nevada defendant, Jullie Ann Sumalinog Moore, 44, a lawful permanent resident from the Philippines, is charged with voting in a federal election in 2024.

"Let me be absolutely clear: if you are a noncitizen and you cast a ballot in our elections, you are committing a federal crime," said Sigal Chattah, first assistant U.S. attorney for Nevada.

Nevada Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar said his office had met its legal obligations in the case. "Voter fraud is a serious offense, and this office supports investigations of election integrity violations that include credible evidence," Aguilar said. He also rejected the Homeland Security Department's claim that as many as 16,000 noncitizens are on Nevada's voter rolls, calling it reckless political theater.

What the charges carry

Federal law makes voting by a noncitizen a crime carrying up to one year in prison. Falsely claiming U.S. citizenship to register or vote is a separate felony carrying up to five years, and prosecutors in California also charged false statements in naturalization applications. A review of the department's case summaries shows 42 of the 48 are accused of casting ballots. One more is accused of submitting a provisional ballot in 2020, and five are accused of registering while claiming citizenship and later lying about it in citizenship paperwork.

Monday's release brings them together in one national announcement.

A court fight runs alongside

The charges land in the middle of a court fight over the same California list. The United States sued California on October 15 after saying it had identified more than 20,000 likely noncitizen registrants, and asked a court to set aside their mail ballots until citizenship is confirmed. A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments on Sunday, and two judges appeared skeptical of the government's request, the Associated Press reported. A district court hearing in the case is scheduled for Tuesday, October 27.

All 48 defendants are charged, not convicted. A complaint, indictment or information contains only accusations, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.