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Amanda Castro

By Amanda Castro

Associate News Editor

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President Donald Trump's U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced election-related charges Monday against 48 non-U.S. citizens in five states, including 47 lawful permanent residents accused of illegal voting, fraudulent voter registration or related crimes.

Lawful permanent residents, commonly known as green card holders, may live and work permanently in the United States but are not U.S. citizens and cannot vote for federal office.

The 47 green card holders charged in California, Pennsylvania, Florida, New York and Nevada face allegations of casting ballots in federal elections, falsely claiming U.S. citizenship when registering and making false statements during the naturalization process.

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The remaining defendant, Alfredo Santiesteban, 73, of Cuba, was described by prosecutors as an undocumented immigrant and is therefore not included in the list below.

A Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson told Newsweek: "Every illegal vote cancels out the vote of a lawful American citizen. In 2020, Iowa's 2nd Congressional District race was decided by six votes. The Department is now bringing more than double that amount of election fraud cases every week. Every federal race also shares the ballot with state and local contests, which are often decided by even narrower margins. Voting by noncitizens and other ineligible voters is a federal crime, and the Department will enforce the law whether a case involves one illegal ballot or hundreds. These prosecutions protect the integrity of our elections and deter others from breaking the law. That is exactly what Americans expect from their Justice Department."

Forty-seven lawful permanent residents face federal charges, accused of illegal voting and voter registration.

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47 Green Card Holders Charged: Full List

The allegations span several election cycles. Some defendants are accused only of unlawful voting, while others face charges involving voter registration, false assertions of citizenship or statements made while seeking naturalization.

The following list is based on individual case descriptions released by federal prosecutors. The government identified all 47 people as lawful permanent residents.

Pennsylvania

  1. Artur Kopacz, 50, Poland: Allegedly voted in the 2022 and 2024 general elections.
  2. Osmal Loy, 70, Cuba: Allegedly voted in the 2024 general election.
  3. Yehuda Peer, 30, Israel: Allegedly voted in the 2024 general election.
  4. Nina Nyawara, 21, Kenya: Allegedly voted in a 2024 election involving presidential and congressional races.
  5. Inna Henry, 52, Russia: Allegedly voted in a 2022 election involving congressional races.
  6. Joyce Donovan, 38, Kenya: Allegedly voted in a 2024 election involving presidential and congressional races.
  7. Joyce Pitts, 80, the Netherlands: Allegedly voted in a 2022 election involving federal offices.
  8. Nourten Kuruju, 64, Greece: Allegedly voted in a 2022 election involving federal offices.

California

  1. Omar Alexander Muñoz, 72, Belize: Allegedly claimed U.S. citizenship when registering, voted in 2020, twice in 2022 and in 2024, then denied having claimed citizenship in a naturalization application.
  2. Amandeep Kaur, 30, India: Allegedly registered in 2022 and voted in November 2024.
  3. Ana Domínguez, 60, El Salvador: Allegedly registered in 2006 and made false statements in naturalization paperwork in 2026.
  4. Axel Giovani Prera García, 46, Guatemala: Allegedly registered in 2002 and 2005 and made false statements in naturalization paperwork in 2025.
  5. Flavio Alejandro Zúñiga, 43, Mexico: Allegedly registered in 2003 and made false statements in naturalization paperwork in 2026.
  6. Butleng Taing, 43, Cambodia: Allegedly registered in 2021, voted in 2022 and 2024 and made false statements in naturalization paperwork.
  7. Carlos Antonio Galeas, 54, Honduras: Allegedly registered in 2012 and 2016 and later made false statements in naturalization paperwork.
  8. Ernest Gutiérrez Ruvalcaba, 57, Mexico: Allegedly registered in February 2024 and voted a month later.
  9. Jesús Narez-Madrigal, 52, Mexico: Allegedly registered in 2014, voted in 2024 and made false statements in naturalization paperwork.
  10. José Antonio Bañuelos-Díaz, 42, Mexico: Allegedly registered in 2007 and made false statements in naturalization paperwork.
  11. Muhammad Khan, 50, Pakistan: Allegedly submitted a provisional ballot in 2020 and later made false statements in naturalization paperwork.
  12. Rouzbeh Seyamaknejad, 63, Canada: Allegedly registered in 2018, made false statements on a naturalization application and voted in November 2024.
  13. Sulema de León, 35, Mexico: Allegedly registered in 2013, made false statements in a naturalization application and voted in 2020.
  14. Maricela Nazarín González, 43, Mexico: Allegedly claimed citizenship when registering and voted in 2022, twice in 2024 and in 2025.
  15. Rony de Jesús Sicaja, 38, Guatemala: Allegedly registered in 2017 and voted in 2022 and 2024.
  16. Camino Giles Jiménez, 51, Mexico: Allegedly voted in three U.S. elections, most recently the June 2026 primary.
  17. Juan Antonio Rivas García, 46, Mexico: Allegedly falsely claimed citizenship when registering and voted in 2022 and 2024.
  18. Giezell Viduya Adawag, 41, Philippines: Allegedly claimed citizenship when registering on Election Day 2024 and voted that day.
  19. Kamlesh Navnitlal Shah, 67, India: Allegedly registered and voted on Election Day 2024.
  20. Verónica Bullene, 43, Mexico: Allegedly claimed citizenship while registering, voted in 2024 and later made false statements in her naturalization application.
  21. David Shapiro, 41, Georgia: Allegedly registered and voted in 2024 and made false statements in his naturalization application.
  22. Moe Thida Lwin, 57, Myanmar: Allegedly registered and voted in 2024 and made false statements in naturalization paperwork.
  23. Manakotau Mataele Finau, 61, Tonga: Allegedly registered and voted in 2024 and later made false statements in naturalization paperwork.
  24. Maribel del Carmen Garcés Barriga, 62, Ecuador: Allegedly registered and voted in 2024 before making false statements in naturalization paperwork.
  25. José Probitsado Amaro, 51, Philippines: Allegedly falsely claimed citizenship when registering, voted in November 2024 and later made false statements during his naturalization interview.
  26. Jennifer Jung, 31, Canada: Allegedly falsely claimed citizenship when registering, voted in November 2024 and later made false statements during her naturalization interview.
  27. Erick Ronaldo Soto Mendizábal, 64, Guatemala: Allegedly claimed citizenship when registering, voted in 2024 and made false statements in his naturalization application.
  28. Pamele Arbués Line, 56, Philippines: Allegedly voted in November 2024 and made false statements during her naturalization interview.

Florida

  1. Jamie Orlando Sosa Sardina, 60, Cuba: Allegedly registered in 2022 and voted in the 2022 and 2024 federal general elections.
  2. Martha Haydee Desantis, 81, Ecuador: Allegedly re-registered in 2024 and voted in the 2022 and 2024 federal general elections.
  3. Lise Marie Johnson, 69, Canada: Allegedly registered in 2021 and voted in the 2022 federal general election.
  4. Luis Manuel Perez, 72, Cuba: Allegedly voted in the 2022 and 2024 federal general elections.
  5. Diane Wendy Curley, 55, Canada: Allegedly voted in the 2022 and 2024 federal general elections.
  6. Pedro Igor A. Franco, 37, Brazil: Allegedly voted in the 2024 federal general election.

New York and Nevada

  1. Marva Cook, 66, Germany: Allegedly voted in an election involving U.S. Senate and House races.
  2. Eoin Cranney, 35, Ireland: Allegedly submitted a fraudulent registration and voted in the 2024 federal general election.
  3. Ronald Sheldon Baird, 47, Guyana: Allegedly submitted a fraudulent registration and voted in the 2024 federal general election.
  4. Karlene Daniels Samuels, 55, Jamaica: Allegedly submitted a fraudulent registration and voted in the 2024 federal general election.
  5. Jullie Ann Sumalinog Moore, 44, Philippines: Allegedly voted in a Nevada election involving presidential and congressional races.

Related Story

Green Card Holders’ Citizenship Approvals Collapse Before Midterms

Green Card Holders’ Citizenship Approvals Collapse Before Midterms

Green Card Holders and Voting: What Federal Law Says

Federal law generally makes it unlawful for a noncitizen to vote in an election held wholly or partly to select the president, vice president, presidential electors, U.S. senators or members of the House. A violation under 18 U.S.C. Section 611 is punishable by a fine, up to one year in prison, or both, subject to limited statutory exceptions.

That prohibition does not apply to local elections. The federal statute includes an exception for circumstances where state or local law permits a noncitizen to vote for another purpose and conducts voting independently so the person cannot vote for federal candidates. Federal law also separately prohibits knowingly falsely claiming U.S. citizenship to register or vote, an offense that can carry up to five years in prison.

Could the Charges Affect Green Card or Citizenship Status?

The cases could also pose immigration implications, particularly for defendants accused of making false citizenship claims or false statements while seeking naturalization. However, criminal charges alone do not establish what immigration consequence, if any, an individual defendant will face.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) says false citizenship claims can make a noncitizen inadmissible when statutory requirements are met, subject to exceptions, and officers consider the circumstances of an individual case. USCIS also considers certain criminal conduct and false testimony when assessing the good moral character requirement for naturalization.

Several defendants face particularly extensive allegations. Muñoz is accused of voting across four election years, while Nazarín González allegedly voted multiple times from 2022 to 2025. Several California defendants are accused of voting and later making false statements about citizenship claims or their voting history while pursuing naturalization.

The DOJ has not accused the 48 defendants of participating in a single conspiracy. Instead, the allegations concern individual cases prosecuted across multiple federal judicial districts.

Newsweek’s reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here. Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Gabe Whisnant and Edward T. Cummins

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