Federal prosecutors announce more indictments in NC for illegal voting

The U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday announced it has indicted 18 more people living in North Carolina with voting illegally in 2024.  

Two weeks ago, on the first day of early voting, the Justice Department announced the indictments of 10 people on charges of voting illegally in the state. 

Seventeen of the people indicted Thursday are legal permanent residents, according to the Justice Department. The other is in the country without permanent legal status, according to the DOJ. 

The indictments allege that the defendants falsely claimed to be U.S. citizens to register and vote in past elections. The charges, which carry a penalty of up to five years in prison, are part of the Trump administration’s nationwide campaign to uncover voting by noncitizens. 

Federal prosecutors announced Thursday’s indictments less than a week before Election Day and as the state’s early voting period is winding down. 

The Southern Coalition for Social Justice said in a press release that the timing of the indictments during an ongoing election is concerning. 

Studies have found that noncitizen voting is rare. More than 5.7 million people voted in North Carolina’s general election in 2024. 

The indictments represent a “miniscule percentage” of the more than 7.9 million people registered to vote in North Carolina, the Southern Coalition said. 

But federal prosecutors said finding illegal voters is important to protecting the integrity of elections. 

“In our most recent elections in North Carolina — the 2025 municipal elections — there were 14 races decided by 2 votes; 15 races decided by 1 vote; and 7 races that were tied,”  U.S. Attorney Russ Ferguson for the Western District of North Carolina, said in a statement. “Every vote matters.  And the public must have confidence that our elections are conducted fairly and that every ballot cast is a lawful one.”