Federal authorities have launched a statewide enforcement operation targeting more than two dozen foreign nationals suspected of illegally registering to vote or casting ballots in California elections.
The effort, called Operation Protect the Vote, involves all four federal judicial districts in California.
It comes just days after the Justice Department sued California over more than 20,000 people federal officials believe are likely noncitizens on the state’s voter rolls.
The developing operation first came into public view Monday morning:
The U.S. Department of Justice announced its lawsuit on October 15 after the Department of Homeland Security and other federal partners identified more than 20,000 people they believe are likely noncitizens registered to vote in California.
According to the federal complaint, officials delivered the list of names to California on October 13 and demanded that the state rapidly review the registrations.
The Justice Department also alleged that California’s universal vote-by-mail system meant the people on that list had received, or would receive, ballots for the November 3 federal election. The lawsuit remains a civil case, and the government’s list is not a final judicial finding that every named person is ineligible.
Attorney General Todd Blanche called state-facilitated voter fraud unacceptable.
California officials are pushing back. Secretary of State Shirley Weber said only American citizens may register and vote in the state, but argued that federal officials had not supplied enough methodology or evidence for California to accept their conclusions without scrutiny.
Governor Gavin Newsom characterized the federal action as an attempt to suppress California voters shortly before Election Day.
But while state leaders dispute the broader list, federal prosecutors are also pursuing individual criminal cases involving specific allegations.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said Operation Protect the Vote provided evidence of noncitizens voting and promised that additional details would be announced.
Essayli addressed the operation directly:
The New York Post reported that Homeland Security Investigations agents went to a home in Commerce, California, associated with Alexander Muñoz, a 72-year-old Belizean national.
Authorities allege that Muñoz registered to vote in September 2019 by falsely claiming to be a United States citizen. They further allege that he voted in 2020, twice in 2022, and again in 2024.
Investigators also allege that Muñoz later lied under oath on a naturalization application when he denied ever claiming American citizenship. Those accusations have not been adjudicated, and guilt has not been established.
The individual allegations against Muñoz and other targets must remain distinct from the separate list of more than 20,000 people whom federal authorities consider likely noncitizens. The entire list has not been criminally charged, and its members have not all been arrested.
ABC7 Los Angeles reported that federal authorities said more than two dozen arrests had been made as part of the developing enforcement effort. Earlier reporting had not established how many targets were already in custody.
The station also reported that all four federal judicial districts in California were participating in the operation and that some targets are accused of both registering and casting ballots. That statewide scope reaches beyond the morning activity in Commerce and signals a coordinated federal effort rather than one isolated arrest.
ABC7 placed the operation inside the escalating dispute between the federal government and California over election administration before the November 3 midterm election. The report also noted that Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter had warned Los Angeles County officials that knowingly processing unlawful ballots could expose them to criminal investigation, while county officials said the dispute should be resolved in court.
ABC7’s report shows the statewide scope of the operation:
Only citizens are legally entitled to choose America’s leaders. Every illegal registration and every unlawful ballot, if proven, undermines the legitimate votes of American citizens.
The accused are entitled to their day in court, and California is entitled to challenge the federal government’s broader claims. But those disputes cannot become an excuse to ignore credible evidence or resist a serious review of the voter rolls.
Americans deserve elections in which every lawful vote counts—and no unlawful vote cancels it out. Operation Protect the Vote now has the responsibility to uncover the full truth and present the evidence clearly to the public.
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[ H/T WLT Report ]
