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Homeland Security investigators are conducting residential visits and reviewing voter records in at least six states as the Trump administration expands efforts to identify noncitizens suspected of registering or voting illegally before the Nov. 3 elections.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Federal agents have begun visiting homes across multiple states to question residents about their citizenship status, voter registration and participation in previous elections as the Trump administration intensifies investigations into suspected noncitizen voting ahead of the Nov. 3 midterms.
The operation, conducted by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), involves armed federal agents and has expanded significantly since September. According to a CBS News investigation published Wednesday, internal government documents show that hundreds of agents were reassigned from other investigations to examine potential election violations in at least six states.
The states identified are California, Georgia, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Washington and Wisconsin. Investigators are using voter registration records, immigration databases and other federal information to identify individuals whose citizenship or voting eligibility requires further examination.
The Department of Homeland Security defended the operation as an effort to enforce federal election law and prevent individuals who are not American citizens from participating in federal elections.
“HSI is actively rooting out and investigating election fraud wherever it can be found,” a DHS spokesperson told CBS News.
“Under President Trump, HSI is committed to restoring integrity to our election systems and ensuring that American citizens and only American citizens are electing American leaders,” the spokesperson added.
Federal law prohibits noncitizens from voting in presidential and congressional elections, including lawful permanent residents who hold green cards. Naturalized citizens, however, possess the same federal voting rights as other eligible American citizens.
DHS has suggested that as many as 250,000 noncitizens could be improperly registered nationwide, although election specialists have questioned the accuracy of that estimate and whether database matches reliably establish citizenship status.
According to figures provided to CBS News by the Justice Department, 156 people have been charged with voting-related fraud offenses since the beginning of Trump’s second administration. The United States has approximately 227 million registered voters.
The number of criminal charges does not establish the total incidence of unlawful voting, but it remains substantially smaller than the administration’s estimates of potentially improper registrations.
The operation became more visible Monday when federal authorities announced criminal charges against 28 lawful permanent residents in California as part of an initiative called Operation Protect the Vote.
The Justice Department’s October 19 announcement stated that 11 defendants had been arrested that day. All 28 defendants are green card holders accused of illegally registering to vote, casting ballots or making false statements concerning their participation in federal elections. <Cite ref=”turn853550search1″/>
The operation is being coordinated by California’s four federal prosecutors’ offices and federal law enforcement agencies.
Among the individuals arrested was a 72-year-old Belizean national accused of voting unlawfully in four elections. CBS News reported that federal agents arrived at his residence and took him into custody while he was still wearing pajamas.
Another case involved Mariana Alexandra Dewey, a Peruvian national accused of election-related offenses, including illegally casting a ballot in 2024. Images circulated by federal authorities showed agents at a residence in the Kansas City area.
The defendants have not been convicted, and the allegations remain subject to court proceedings.
The residential investigations have generated concern among former federal officials and voting-rights advocates who question whether such an extensive deployment of immigration investigators is warranted.
Eric Balliet, a former HSI agent who served under multiple presidential administrations, told CBS News that the operation differs substantially from the investigative work he encountered during his career.
“In my 23 years with HSI, I never engaged in or was aware of any incident of initiative that sent Special Agents to private residences to verify the eligibility of voters,” Balliet said.
HSI traditionally investigates crimes involving cross-border criminal organizations, drug trafficking, financial fraud, money laundering and child exploitation. Critics question whether diverting investigators from those responsibilities could affect other enforcement priorities.
Jessica Marsden, an attorney with the advocacy organization Protect Democracy, which is challenging the operation in court, argued that armed visits could discourage lawful voters from participating.
“What we’re seeing now is the federal government is inserting itself into the state process for verifying their voter rolls in an unprecedented way,” Marsden told CBS News.
“And they are doing it in a way that seems maximally designed to scare lawful voters from participating.”
The organization maintains that legitimate voters, particularly naturalized citizens and people with immigrant backgrounds, could become concerned about being incorrectly identified as ineligible.
Emory University professor Carol Anderson expressed similar concerns, arguing that the presence of federal agents could affect people who have every legal right to vote.
“It is sending the signal to a much broader community, do not show up at the polls. Do not vote,” Anderson said.
DHS rejected allegations of intimidation, maintaining that investigators are conducting legitimate criminal inquiries and that individuals who are lawfully present and complying with federal election laws have no reason to fear enforcement.
The department also denied that investigators were subject to quotas requiring them to identify a predetermined number of election offenses.
That response followed allegations from a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services whistleblower who said employees had been instructed to review voter information involving tens of thousands of people, including American citizens, and complete approximately 40 cases daily.
Federal officials have maintained that investigative targets are identified through record comparisons and other evidence rather than predetermined enforcement numbers.
The reliability of those comparisons has become a major point of contention.
Immigration databases do not always reflect an individual’s current citizenship status, particularly when someone has become a naturalized American citizen after initially entering the country as a foreign national.
Discrepancies involving names, dates of birth, outdated records or incomplete information can also produce inaccurate matches.
Marsden cited an earlier investigation in Nevada in which federal authorities alleged that nearly 16,000 noncitizens appeared on voter rolls but ultimately failed to substantiate a single case of illegal registration, according to CBS News.
Similar disagreements are unfolding in California, where the Justice Department recently filed a lawsuit seeking to prevent officials from counting ballots associated with approximately 20,000 suspected noncitizens until their eligibility could be verified.
California officials have challenged the federal data, arguing that some flagged individuals appear to be American citizens and that restricting their ballots without adequate evidence could improperly deny voting rights.
The dispute is part of a broader confrontation over federal involvement in state election administration.
On Wednesday, Democratic congressional leaders and party organizations filed a separate lawsuit alleging that the administration was exceeding its authority by attempting to influence state voter rolls and ballot-counting procedures.
According to Associated Press reporting on the lawsuit, the plaintiffs accuse the administration of using disputed voter data and threats of prosecution to pressure election officials. The Justice Department maintains that its activities are lawful efforts to enforce federal election statutes. <Cite ref=”turn853550news28″/>
The expanding federal operation has also raised questions about the division of authority between state governments, which administer elections, and federal agencies responsible for investigating violations of federal law.
While noncitizen voting in federal elections is prohibited, authorities must establish whether individuals are ineligible and whether their conduct satisfies the requirements for criminal prosecution.
The Trump administration has argued that stronger investigations are necessary to identify violations that may otherwise remain undetected. Voting-rights organizations counter that enforcement must be based on reliable evidence and should not discourage lawful participation.
With less than two weeks remaining before Election Day, HSI agents are continuing residential visits and reviewing voter records while federal prosecutors pursue cases arising from the operation.
The outcome of those investigations, along with pending lawsuits challenging the administration’s methods, will determine how the enforcement initiative proceeds and whether federal courts impose additional restrictions on its activities.
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