The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has directed Immigration and Customs Enforcement attorneys to step up removal proceedings against non-citizens who vote illegally in U.S. elections, even without a criminal conviction.
In a memo issued Tuesday, June 9, DHS General Counsel James Percival told ICE lawyers to prioritize these cases.
DHS Orders ICE to Focus on Illegal Voting Cases
The move comes as the Trump administration pushes to tighten election security and keep voting open only to citizens.
“Only Americans should be electing America’s leaders,” Percival wrote in a post on X announcing the directive. “Foreign citizens who illegally vote in our elections are deportable, regardless of their immigration status.”
The policy leans on long-standing provisions in the Immigration and Nationality Act. Federal law already makes non-citizens who vote unlawfully deportable.
The new emphasis aims to turn that into faster action on the ground. ICE attorneys can now pursue administrative removal without waiting for prosecutors to secure a criminal conviction in court.
What the New Directive Means for Non-Citizens
Officials say the goal is to protect the integrity of American elections. They argue that every illegal vote dilutes the voice of legitimate citizens.
With millions of non-citizens living in the country, including those here illegally, the administration wants to deter any attempt to influence outcomes at the ballot box.
The memo cites key sections of immigration law that allow deportation for unlawful voting. It states that proving specific intent or obtaining a criminal conviction is not required to initiate removal proceedings.
That lowers the bar for action and could speed up cases that might otherwise drag through the courts.
Immigration enforcement teams have already identified instances of non-citizens registering or casting ballots in recent cycles, even though large-scale fraud remains rare, according to recent reports.
Still, isolated cases have fueled calls for stronger measures.
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The new directive now gives field officers and lawyers clearer marching orders to act when evidence comes to light.
“In light of the importance of these laws and their role in ensuring fair elections, I expect OPLA attorneys to invoke these provisions in removal proceedings to the maximum extent allowed by law,” the memo concluded.
Some immigration advocates called the policy an overreach that could sweep up people who made honest mistakes, such as long-term residents misled about their eligibility.
Others cautioned it might overwhelm an already backlogged immigration court system.
The Trump administration supporters, however, say the rules have been on the books for years and simply went unenforced.
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They point to past cases where non-citizens, including some with legal visas, admitted to voting after filling out registration forms that asked about citizenship status.
In several high-profile prosecutions, defendants claimed they did not understand the rules.
Since taking office, the Trump administration has ramped up deportations, expanded detention capacity, and targeted sanctuary jurisdictions.
This latest move adds election-related violations to the list of priorities for ICE attorneys in the Office of the Principal Legal Advisor.
How Federal Law Treats Illegal Voting by Non-Citizens
Federal law has barred non-citizens from voting in national elections for decades. Most states also prohibit it in local and state races.
Penalties can include fines, prison time, and permanent bars on legal immigration status. Yet enforcement has often been spotty, left to local election officials and sporadic federal probes.
Percival’s directive seeks to change that by making illegal voting a trigger for quick immigration consequences.
Attorneys will review evidence from voter rolls, registration records, and tips about suspected non-citizen ballots and initiate removal proceedings directly where probable cause exists.
The policy applies to non-citizens regardless of how they entered the country or their current immigration status.
That includes people with expired visas, those awaiting asylum hearings, and those living here unlawfully.
Implementation will fall to ICE’s legal team, which works closely with immigration judges.
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