Mullin Warns Illegal Voters DHS Will 'Hunt You Down' as Polls Open; Federal Law Makes It a Deportable Offense

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin warned on Election Day that anyone who votes illegally will be found and prosecuted, as the department's top lawyer told noncitizens, including those with legal immigration status, that voting illegally can get them deported.

"If you vote illegally in this country, and you are NOT eligible to vote, @DHSgov will find you, hunt you down, and you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Only American citizens should be deciding American elections," Mullin wrote on X at 10:32 a.m. Eastern Tuesday, as polls were open across the country.

At 2:16 p.m., DHS General Counsel James Percival posted: "Report voter fraud. And if you're thinking of voting illegally—don't. Even if you have lawful immigration status, illegally voting as a noncitizen makes you deportable." Mullin shared the post on his own account, adding a "100" emoji.

Percival was quoting a Monday post by Attorney General Todd Blanche: "Election Day is tomorrow. The Department of Justice expects all federal election laws to be followed," Blanche wrote, asking for tips on "noncitizens voting, double voting, and ballot-box stuffing" through 1-800-CALL-FBI or tips.fbi.gov. "Violators will be found and prosecuted."

What Federal Law Says

The Digital Free Press reviewed the statutes behind the warnings. Under 18 U.S.C. § 611, it is unlawful "for any alien to vote in any election held solely or in part for the purpose of electing a candidate" for president, vice president, the Senate or the House. The penalty is a fine, up to one year in prison, or both.

A separate law, 18 U.S.C. § 1015(f), makes it a crime, punishable by up to five years in prison, to knowingly make a false claim of U.S. citizenship "in order to register to vote or to vote in any Federal, State, or local election."

The immigration consequence Percival described is in 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(6): "Any alien who has voted in violation of any Federal, State, or local constitutional provision, statute, ordinance, or regulation is deportable." The provision applies to "any alien," a category that includes green card holders.

Both the criminal law and the deportation provision carve out a narrow exception. It covers a noncitizen whose parents are or were U.S. citizens, who lived permanently in the United States before age 16, and who "reasonably believed" at the time of voting that he or she was a citizen. Section 611 also does not apply to local elections in which a state or local law lets noncitizens vote, as long as federal races are kept separate.

The Justice Department's Latest Cases

The warnings came a day after the Justice Department announced charges involving 63 people "in connection with illegal voting, fraudulent voter registration, and related election crimes across the country." The department's release identifies four of the 63 as illegal aliens. Most of the people listed in its case summaries are described as lawful permanent residents, including four of the five charged in the Southern District of Texas.

"Today's announcement marks the largest surge of voter-fraud arrests since President Trump returned to office," Blanche said in the release. The department said it has charged 195 aliens across 25 states with illegal voting and registration offenses in the last nine weeks, and 239 people with voting fraud-related offenses since the start of the administration.

On Monday night, Mullin also shared an ICE post saying Homeland Security Investigations had arrested four foreign nationals in Tennessee, Oklahoma and New Jersey "for allegedly voting illegally in U.S. elections, including the 2024 presidential election."

Charges are allegations. Every defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.

Seeing election problems at your polling place? Contact The Digital Free Press at tips@thedigitalfreepress.com.

Sources: Secretary Markwayne Mullin on X, Nov. 3, 2026 (https://x.com/SecMullinDHS/status/2117640965041389959); DHS General Counsel James Percival on X, Nov. 3, 2026 (https://x.com/DHSGenCounsel/status/2117697348306620819); Attorney General Todd Blanche on X, Nov. 2, 2026 (https://x.com/AGToddBlanche/status/2117368786466533661); U.S. Department of Justice, "Justice Department Announces Charges Involving 63 Individuals for Election-Related Crimes," Nov. 2, 2026 (https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-announces-charges-involving-63-individuals-election-related-crimes); ICE on X, Nov. 2, 2026 (https://x.com/ICEgov/status/2117428567403311605); 18 U.S.C. § 611 (https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/611); 18 U.S.C. § 1015 (https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1015); 8 U.S.C. § 1227 (https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/8/1227). Cover photo: official portrait of DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.