Federal prosecutors in California have charged 28 green card holders with illegal voting or fraudulent voter registration, including two Indian nationals, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) said on Monday.
The cases land three weeks before the November midterms and add to an escalating row between the Trump administration and the state.
What Prosecutors Allege
The DOJ said 21 of the 28 defendants cast ballots they were not entitled to. Lawful permanent residents can live and work in the US but are barred from voting in federal elections.
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Charges include fraudulent registration and false statements in naturalisation applications, with some offences carrying up to five years in prison.
The two Indian nationals are Amandeep Kaur, 30, of Los Angeles County, and Kamlesh Navnitlal Shah, 67, of Sacramento. Prosecutors say Kaur, who is applying for citizenship, registered in December 2022 and voted in the 2024 presidential election.
Shah is accused of registering and voting on the same day in 2024. Eleven defendants were arrested on Monday, but the DOJ did not say whether the two were among them.
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How The Cases Were Built
Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter said all 28 appeared on a list of more than 20,000 "likely noncitizen" registrants that federal officials gave California last week.
He conceded that some people on the list could be citizens.
A Widening Dispute
The arrests follow weeks of pressure on Sacramento. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told California Secretary of State Shirley Weber in July that numerous noncitizens were likely registered in the state.
The DOJ later wrote to election officials demanding action, and it has since sued California over its handling of suspected noncitizen registrations.
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Weber has questioned the reliability of the federal data and warned against purging voters without proper verification. California mails a ballot to every registered voter, a system federal officials have repeatedly criticised.
Part Of A National Push
The California operation is one of several. In August, federal prosecutors arrested a Honduran green card holder in Los Angeles on similar charges, and cases have since been filed in Texas, New Jersey and other states.
Votebeat, a nonprofit election outlet, reported in late September that around 70 people had been charged nationwide.
Some defence lawyers say certain green card holders may have voted without knowing it was prohibited.
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