Trump Administration Claims California May Have 190,000 Non-Citizens On Voter Rolls
The Trump administration says a Department of Homeland Security review has identified roughly 190,000 individuals in California who may be non-citizens but remain registered to vote, prompting federal officials to demand that the state review and verify its voter rolls.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin announced that DHS had notified California election officials of the findings, which are part of a broader review covering four states. According to the department, preliminary data suggests more than 250,000 potentially ineligible voter registrations may exist across California, New Jersey, Nevada, and Pennsylvania.
Administration officials said the review relied on federal immigration and citizenship databases and urged state officials to work with DHS to determine whether the individuals identified remain ineligible to vote or have since become U.S. citizens. They stressed that the figures represent registrations requiring verification rather than confirmed cases of illegal voting.
The announcement follows President Trump’s recent push for stronger election security measures, including proof-of-citizenship requirements for voter registration and expanded use of federal databases to help states maintain accurate voter rolls. The administration has argued that ensuring only eligible citizens are registered is essential to protecting election integrity.
California officials have previously disputed similar claims and defended the state’s election safeguards, maintaining that existing procedures are designed to prevent ineligible individuals from voting. State leaders have not yet released the results of any independent review of the latest DHS findings.
The administration has warned that states refusing to cooperate with federal election security initiatives could face consequences, including the potential loss of certain federal election funding. DHS officials said they will continue working with state election offices to verify the data and remove any ineligible registrations that are confirmed.