Two Indians among 28 charged with election fraud in California

Two Indian nationals are among 28 green card holders charged with election fraud in California, the US Department of Justice said in a statement on Monday. According to the Justice Department, Amandeep Kaur (30) and Kamlesh Shah (67) have been charged with fraudulently registering as voters and casting their ballots in the November 2024 US elections.It said of the 28 persons charged with election fraud, 11 have been arrested in early Monday morning raids across the state under ‘Operation Protect the Vote’ to combat and root out fraud in US elections and uphold electoral integrity.
According to the department, Shah, a Sacramento resident, allegedly registered to vote and cast his ballot on the same day during the November 2024 general election. Kaur, who lives in Rancho Palos Verdes and is seeking US citizenship, allegedly registered in December 2022 and voted in the 2024 election.
“Each of the 28 defendants charged on Monday appears on the list of more than 20,000 likely noncitizen registrants we provided to California election officials last week,” Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter told reporters in Los Angeles. Before Monday’s announcement, the Justice Department had charged about 90 people with various forms of election misconduct this year, including 50 accused of voting despite not being US citizens. The US had more than 227 million registered voters during the 2024 presidential election.

UPDATE: 28 noncitizens are now CHARGED with illegally registering to vote in California, and at least 11 are already in custody, says First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli > "We began arresting these individuals this morning... The rest will be in custody in the near future" > DOJ has charged 113 noncitizens across 20 states with illegal voting and registration offenses in the last 7 weeks alone > "These are not isolated instances. We are investigating thousands of more similar cases throughout the nation" ???? @Breaking911

— James Reichert (@_jamesreichert) October 19, 2026

“All 28 foreign nationals charged are lawful permanent residents (LPRs), or ‘green card’ holders. Although LPRs have legal immigration status in the United States, they are not US citizens and are not permitted to vote in US elections,” the department said. The charges include making false statements in naturalisation applications and, in some cases, fraudulent voter registration. Both are felony offences carrying a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison.