With Election Day just days away, the Trump administration is sending a clear message: American elections belong to American citizens. Homeland Security Investigations and the FBI are running Operation Ballot Shield in North Carolina, and the arrests keep coming.
On Thursday the Justice Department announced charges against 18 more aliens accused of illegally voting in the 2024 election: nine in the Eastern District, five in the Middle District and four in the Western District of North Carolina. With earlier indictments, 30 people have now been charged across the state this year.
Cameras were rolling Wednesday morning when agents stopped a car on US 421 in Lillington and took Patricia Elena Valencia Cardona, a lawful permanent resident from Colombia, into custody. She is accused of falsely claiming citizenship to vote in 2024; voter records show she registered just three days before the election and voted early in person. Prosecutors say another defendant, a permanent resident from Kenya, registered in 2008 and voted in nine general elections and nine primaries. Another, an illegal alien from Guatemala, is charged with voting in 2020 and 2024.
“Protecting the integrity of our elections is fundamental to preserving our constitutional republic,” said U.S. Attorney Ellis Boyle of the Eastern District of North Carolina. Falsely claiming citizenship to vote carries up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Earlier this week, the Justice Department announced that 48 people across multiple states had been taken into custody on similar charges.
Homeland Security put it plainly: “AMERICAN ELECTIONS BELONG TO AMERICAN CITIZENS. … Our message to noncitizens who illegally vote is clear: We will find you, arrest you, and bring you to justice.” Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3.
