The United States Department of Justice has charged two Nigerian nationals and dozens of other foreign citizens with allegedly participating in illegal voting, fraudulent voter registration and making false claims of American citizenship during federal elections.
The charges involve 63 individuals across different parts of the United States and form part of an intensified investigation into alleged election-related offences under President Donald Trump’s administration.
The Nigerian nationals were identified as Mohammed Omar Hassan, 61, and Michael Agah, 74. Both are lawful permanent residents of the United States but are not American citizens.
According to the Department of Justice, Hassan was charged in the Southern District of Texas with voting illegally as a non-citizen. Prosecutors allege that he participated in the 2022 and 2024 federal elections despite not being eligible to vote.
Agah, who was charged in the Western District of North Carolina, faces allegations of voting as a non-citizen and falsely claiming to be an American citizen to participate in an election.
Investigators allege that he declared himself a US citizen on an official Authorisation to Vote Form before casting his ballot in the November 5, 2024 federal election.
US AUTHORITIES ANNOUNCE LARGEST RECENT VOTER-FRAUD ARREST SURGE
Announcing the charges on Monday, November 2, 2026, the US Department of Justice said the cases involved different forms of alleged election-related violations, including unlawful voting by non-citizens, fraudulent registration and false declarations of citizenship.
US Attorney-General Todd Blanche described the development as the largest surge in voter-fraud arrests since President Trump returned to office.
He accused the suspects of exploiting the trust of American voters and violating laws governing the country’s electoral system.
Blanche added that the Justice Department would continue investigating and prosecuting election-related offences to protect confidence in the electoral process.
The department disclosed that it had charged 195 non-US citizens across 25 states with illegal voting and voter-registration offences within the preceding nine weeks.
It further stated that the total number of individuals charged with voting fraud-related offences since the beginning of the Trump administration had reached 239.
TWO NIGERIANS AMONG FOREIGN NATIONALS FACING PROSECUTION
The latest development adds to previous cases involving Nigerian nationals accused of election-related offences in the United States.
In September 2026, American authorities announced charges against three other Nigerians alongside 13 foreign nationals over alleged illegal voting, false claims of citizenship and related offences.
The Nigerians were identified as Gladys Adaeze Okafor, 56; Helen Sayen Adams, 67; and Joshua Nmelichukwu Akpom, 27.
Okafor and Adams were accused of falsely presenting themselves as American citizens to register and participate in elections, while Akpom faced allegations of making false statements in connection with his application for US citizenship.
The latest cases have been filed across several federal judicial districts, including Texas, North Carolina, Tennessee, California, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
Other foreign nationals named in the investigations reportedly include citizens of Mexico, Jamaica, Canada, the Philippines, India, Colombia, the United Kingdom and several other countries.
US LAW RESTRICTS FEDERAL VOTING TO CITIZENS
Under US federal law, non-citizens are generally prohibited from voting in federal elections, including presidential and congressional elections.
Although some local jurisdictions permit non-citizens to participate in certain local elections, this does not extend to federal elections.
The Justice Department maintains that the charges are part of efforts to protect the integrity of American elections and enforce existing electoral laws.
However, the department emphasised that criminal complaints, indictments and formal charges represent allegations rather than proof of guilt.
All the accused individuals are presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.
