Justice Department Charges 63 Foreigners in Largest Electoral Fraud Push
The federal government announced the largest increase in electoral fraud arrests since President Donald Trump took office in his second term.
By Takeshi Faure ·
The U.S. Department of Justice announced on Monday that it has filed charges against 63 individuals for alleged electoral offenses. The group includes dozens of people with Latin American origins. The accusations center on illegal voting and fraudulent voter registration practices.
Federal prosecutors allege that the defendants falsely declared U.S. citizenship to register or cast ballots. Some are accused of fraudulently submitting voter registration applications in states where they did not reside. Attorney General Todd Blanche stated that the announcement represents the largest jump in fraud-related detentions since President Donald Trump returned to the White House.
Among the accused is Patricia Elena Valencia Cardona, a 56-year-old Colombian national and legal permanent resident. She faces one charge for falsely claiming U.S. citizenship to vote and another for voting as a foreigner. Cardona registered in North Carolina in 2024 and cast her ballot in that year’s general election.
Yamila Avalos, an Argentine national and legal permanent resident in North Carolina, faces a formal charge for voting as a foreigner. In another case, Juan Florencio Ramos, a Cuban national and legal permanent resident, was charged with knowingly making a false citizenship claim and voting while a foreigner.
Three Mexican legal permanent residents in Texas also face electoral fraud charges. Diego Benavides Rodriguez is 29, Jose Vasquez-Mendoza is 51, and Karen Hinojosa-Martinez is 37. Mariela Elizabeth Avila Ortiz, a 33-year-old Honduran national and legal permanent resident in Tennessee, is accused of voting in the 2024 elections. That election included contests for president, vice president, Senate, and House of Representatives seats.
The charges extend to individuals from Canada, Europe, Asia, and Africa. The Trump administration has intensified legal action against noncitizens accused of fraudulent voting. In the past nine weeks, the U.S. has indicted 195 foreigners across 25 states for voting and registration crimes. The Department of Justice has charged 239 people with electoral fraud offenses during the current presidential term.
The executive branch recently engaged in legal disputes with California over more than 20,000 mail-in ballots. The Justice Department argued those ballots were sent by noncitizens, but the government lost its case in at least four courts, including the Supreme Court. Heritage Foundation researchers identified 23 noncitizen voting cases between 2003 and 2022. The Brennan Center for Justice estimated that 0.0001 percent of 23.5 million votes in 42 jurisdictions in 2016 were potentially cast by noncitizens, with only two jurisdictions reporting possible cases.
