White House responds to NJ registering thousands of noncitizens to vote
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt underscored the administration’s push to investigate claims of noncitizen voting and tighten safeguards around U.S. elections. She pointed to a letter from the Homeland Security secretary urging states, including New Jersey, to identify and remove noncitizens from voter registration lists.
House Speaker Mike Johnson took aim at Democrats on Thursday over election security, after several noncitizens were charged in Michigan with allegedly casting ballots illegally. Johnson argued that such cases, if found elsewhere, could increasingly undermine public confidence in American elections.
“From New Jersey to Michigan, the evidence continues to mount: Illegal aliens are registering and VOTING in American elections,” Johnson wrote in a post on X.
He went on to accuse Democrats of recognizing the issue while still supporting policies he described as “OPEN BORDERS” and opposing voter identification requirements, calling the situation a “clear and present danger to the integrity of our elections — and our Republic.”
“All Americans DESERVE secure elections, and Republicans are the ones fighting to make it happen,” Johnson added.
His comments followed an announcement from Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, who said five people who are not U.S. citizens and allegedly voted in the 2024 presidential election have been charged with election-related crimes. A U.S. citizen accused of registering her noncitizen husband to vote was also charged.
The Michigan charges stem from a broader state review examining 38 suspected incidents involving alleged noncitizen voting or related election conduct dating from 2009 through 2025.
According to state officials, six of those cases have led to criminal charges, 10 have been closed without prosecution, and 22 remain under active investigation.
Dana Nessel (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
“In my office, we’ve always taken election crimes seriously and prosecute attacks on our voting systems to the fullest extent of the law,” Nessel said in a statement.
“We’re upholding election integrity by investigating all claims of noncitizen voters, as rare as they are, and holding bad actors accountable when they refuse to abide by the laws that keep our elections safe and secure.”
More than 5.7 million ballots were cast in Michigan during the November 2024 general election.
State officials have said illegal voting by noncitizens remains rare.
A voter drops a ballot into a ballot box at the Minneapolis Elections & Voter Services building Sept. 20, 2024, in Minneapolis. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)
The charges come as President Donald Trump’s administration has made preventing illegal voting a priority.
He signed executive orders in March 2025 and March 2026 to strengthen citizenship verification for federal elections and directing agencies to give states greater access to citizenship and immigration data.
Trump’s administration has also backed legislation requiring proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote in federal elections.
Nessel’s announcement included Robert Piva, 67, of Roseville, a permanent resident charged with election law perjury, attempting to vote unqualified and fraudulent registration.
“I Voted” stickers are ready to be given out as citizens go through the voting process at Scheig Center & Gardens on Election Day Nov. 5, 2024, in Appleton, Wis. (Dan Powers/USA Today Network Wisconsin)
He allegedly voted early in October 2024. Piva claimed his vote was an “experiment” concerning voter fraud.
Michael Akioya, 39, of Oak Park, also a permanent resident, was charged with allegedly making false statements on an absentee voter application and ballot envelope during the 2024 election.
Alondra Harker, 26, of Three Rivers, is a limited-term alien resident charged with misdemeanor fraudulent registration, which is punishable by up to 90 days in jail, for allegedly registering and voting in person in 2024.
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump and former first lady Melania Trump walk after voting on Election Day at the Morton and Barbara Mandel Recreation Center, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Harumi Michael, 60, who lives in Wolverine Lake, is a permanent resident who faces three felonies — two counts of election forgery and one count of attempting to vote unqualified — plus one misdemeanor for allegedly registering and voting in Commerce Township.
Basanth Sadasivian, 29, is a noncitizen living in the United Kingdom who was charged with felony attempting to vote unqualified, punishable by up to four years in prison, for allegedly registering and voting in 2024 through the Federal Post Card Application system using a Bloomfield Hills address.
And Kimberley DiDonato, 60, of Rose Township, is a U.S. citizen charged with election forgery and computer crime after allegedly posing as her noncitizen husband to register him online.
Authorities said DiDonato claimed she wanted to test system vulnerabilities before asking to cancel the registration.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel attends an event for Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., in Clawson, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya File)
Nessel’s office declined to charge four referred people after determining that two were U.S. citizens, one was an American citizen through an international adoption and another was a federally recognized American Indian born in Canada.
Six additional cases were closed without charges because of a lack of evidence of criminal intent or potential registration errors.
Nessel also said delays in federal cooperation affected the timeline of the state’s investigations.
“While the question of whether any given resident is a citizen may feel simple, some cases are nuanced in unexpected ways,” Nessel said.
“The federal government has not always provided easy or open access to certain necessary citizenship records, and so our investigators had to spend considerable time and effort coaxing cooperation from the federal agencies.”
