US Justice Department charges 28 green card holders in California over illegal voting
The US Department of Justice has charged 28 permanent residents in California with fraudulently registering to vote and casting illegal ballots. It is the latest step in a federal push against alleged noncitizen voting, weeks before the midterm elections.
The US Department of Justice has charged 28 green card holders in California, meaning permanent residents who are not US citizens. It accuses them of fraudulently registering to vote and casting illegal ballots. Eleven people are in custody. The case is the latest escalation in federal efforts against alleged noncitizen voting, less than a month before the November midterm elections for the US Congress.
A lawsuit against the state
The arrests came days after the Justice Department sued California itself. The department is seeking to stop the state from tabulating certain ballots in the November vote. California's secretary of state, Shirley Weber, called the demands "outrageous". She noted that federal officials have spent months making "vague and unsubstantiated allegations".
Democrats and voting rights groups say the administration is laying the groundwork to sow doubt over the election results.
Threats to members of Congress
Separately, more than three dozen members of Congress have had their offices targeted with envelopes containing white powder. This happened less than three weeks before the election. Federal agents are trying to identify who is behind the campaign.
