The Justice Department charged 28 lawful permanent residents in California with illegal voting, fraudulent registrations, and false statements as part of Operation Protect the Vote.
Posted by The Rubin Report, Checked
- Sources
- 5 support2 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 90%
The Rubin ReportOct 20, 2026
Multiple independent sources, including a DOJ primary press release and AP/Reuters reporting, confirm that DOJ charged 28 lawful permanent residents in California in Operation Protect the Vote with illegal voting, fraudulent registration, and false statements offenses.
What was said
… roll fight that came into focus last week, when the Justice Department sued California and warned that local election workers who knowingly process or tabulate ballots submitted by non-citizen voters are at risk of investigation and potential prosecution. The Justice Department said the 28 people charged as part of a sweep dubbed Operation Protect the Vote are lawful permanent residents, not US. Citizens permitted to vote. They are charged with crimes including making false statements on a naturalization application and submitting fraudulent voter registrations. This causes real damage to real elections and real damage to American citizens, Trent McDodd, the acting deputy attorney general, said during a news conference in Los Angeles. …
The Rubin Report · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. The DOJ press release states that all 28 foreign nationals charged are lawful permanent residents, charged with fraudulent voter registration and false statements in a naturalization application as part of Operation Protect the Vote.[3]
Supports. AP reporting says the 28 people charged as part of the sweep are lawful permanent residents and face charges including false statements on naturalization applications and submitting fraudulent voter registrations.[4][5]
Supports. Acting DOJ Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter described charges including unlawful voting by an alien and false claims of citizenship to vote or register.[6][7]
Context. Reuters reports the DOJ announced the charges on October 19 and that the 28 were among a list of about 20,000 people alleged to be likely noncitizens; the broader list is disputed and an appeals court later ruled against the administration on mail ballots.[1]
Context. AP reports that most targeted immigrants had applied for citizenship and that some were not accused of casting a ballot, so the charges are chiefly registration and false-statement offenses rather than proven voting.[2]
Sources
7 sources: 2 fact-checkers, 1 primary, 4 not rated
- 1Trump administration loses push to block California votes from alleged noncitizensreuters.com · fact-checker · cited for: context
- 2Immigrants seeking US citizenship targeted in Trump ...apnews.com · fact-checker · cited for: context
- 3Justice Department Charges 28 Foreign Nationals in ...justice.gov · primary source · cited for: supports
- 4Justice Department charges more than 2 dozen in California sweep ...ap.org · not rated · cited for: supports
- 5Justice Department charges more than 2 dozen in California sweep targeting alleged noncitizen voterstwincities.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 6DOJ charges 28 people in California with voting crimesrmb.reuters.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 7Federal officials charge 28 in California noncitizen voting investigationyahoo.com · not rated · cited for: supports
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
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