Eleven people were detained on October 19. The operation coincides with a federal lawsuit to review thousands of voter rolls before the November 3 elections.
The United States Department of Justice has filed federal charges against 28 lawful permanent residents in California for alleged offenses related to voter registration, voting, and false statements in naturalization proceedings. Eleven of the defendants were detained on Monday, October 19, 2026 during an operation coordinated by the state’s four federal prosecutors’ offices.
The investigation, named Operation Protect the Vote, is taking place ahead of the midterm elections on November 3 and forms part of a dispute between the administration of President Donald Trump and California authorities over the review of the voter rolls.
The 28 individuals charged are lawful permanent residents of the United States, according to the Department of Justice. The charges include false statements on naturalization applications and, in some cases, allegedly fraudulent voter records.
The charges still must be resolved in court. Filing charges does not constitute a finding of guilt, and the defendants retain the presumption of innocence.
Eleven people were detained in the October 19 operation
Federal authorities carried out the arrests as part of an investigation into individuals who allegedly registered to vote without United States citizenship.
According to the Department of Justice, some of the defendants may also have cast ballots in prior elections and later provided false information about those records in their naturalization applications.
The charges announced on October 19 include felonies that can carry up to five years in federal prison, according to the applicable indictment. That figure represents the maximum allowed by law as stated by authorities and not a sentence imposed on the defendants.
Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter said that the cases represent a harm to the integrity of U.S. elections.
The investigation focuses on events allegedly occurring in California. The Department of Justice did not announce arrests in Houston related to this same operation.
The federal government questions more than 20,000 records in California
The charges were announced four days after the Department of Justice filed, on October 15, a lawsuit against California related to more than 20,000 individuals the federal government considers potentially non-citizens registered on the voter rolls.
The administration requests that California separate the mail-in ballots associated with the questioned records until the citizenship of their holders can be determined.
The Department of Justice asserted that the 28 individuals accused are part of the list of more than 20,000 records submitted to state election authorities.
However, identifying a record as suspected does not by itself prove that its holder lacks citizenship or has committed an electoral offense. The criminal charges against 28 people and the lawsuit over the thousands of records are separate proceedings.
The federal lawsuit against California seeks a court order that allows verification of the noted records before counting the corresponding votes.
California questions the accuracy of the federal list
The California Secretary of State, Shirley Weber, rejected the federal demands and questioned that the government sought to review thousands of records within a 48-hour deadline, just weeks before the elections.
Weber said that the state has mechanisms to protect its voter rolls and warned that a review based on unverified information could affect eligible voters.
The controversy intensified after Los Angeles County officials examined a preliminary sample of 200 records from the federal list.
According to court documents reported by NPR, the review identified records of people who had stated they were born in the United States. Among the files containing significant birthplace information, 38.9% indicated birth in United States territory.
The sample does not allow determining the citizenship status of the more than 20,000 people on the list, but county authorities presented it as evidence of potential errors in the federal identification.
The federal government maintains that its investigation used multiple databases and verification methods. California, for its part, questions the reliability of the results and the legality of the measures requested.
Texas also investigates possible cases of non-citizen voting
The review of voter records is not limited to California. In Texas, the Secretary of State reported on September 15, 2026 that she referred 117 potential cases of voting by people without United States citizenship to the state Attorney General for investigation.
The department had initially identified 2,724 potentially questionable records after cross-checking the voter rolls with a federal database.
A subsequent review found that 578 people did have United States citizenship. The Secretary of State noted that records removed in error should be restored when appropriate.
The 117 cases referred in Texas are investigations, not convictions. They are not part of the 28 charges announced in California.
The Texas Secretary of State’s report distinguishes among initially flagged records, cases clarified by further verifications, and files referred for investigation.
The proceedings move forward ahead of the November 3 election
The federal investigation and the lawsuit against California will proceed during a period of intense electoral activity. While the Department of Justice says its actions aim to prevent illegal votes, California authorities warn about the risk of affecting legitimate voters through lists that are still subject to verification.
Evidence collected in various election investigations has shown that illegal voting by non-citizens is rare. Individual cases can be investigated and punished without constituting evidence of a widespread problem.
The federal midterm elections are scheduled for Tuesday, November 3, 2026. As of October 22, the 28 California charges remain pending criminal proceedings.
