Trump and DHS Threaten States Over Alleged Noncitizen Voters

President Donald Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin are attempting to compel states to scrub voter rolls of noncitizens and ineligible voters under threat of federal penalties. Following a primetime address on July 16 and 17, 2026, the administration alleged that over 278,000 noncitizens are registered to vote nationwide. Specifically, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) identified approximately 250,000 potential noncitizen voters across California, New Jersey, Nevada, and Pennsylvania, with California accounting for the largest share at 190,832.

Secretary Mullin has warned that noncompliant election officials could face fines and prison sentences of up to five years, while states may be stripped of federal election-related aid and FEMA grants. The administration is demanding the handover of sensitive voter data for Justice Department audits, despite multiple courts dismissing previous lawsuits to obtain these files and one judge ruling the central DHS audit program illegal. Internal DHS communications reportedly acknowledge that the figures, based on the SAVE system and commercial databases, are unverified and potentially inflated.

State officials have largely resisted the demands. Nevada Secretary of State Francisco Aguilar called the numbers "wildly speculative," while California Governor Gavin Newsom and Pennsylvania Secretary of State Al Schmidt defended their election integrity and methodology. Additionally, FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez rejected Trump's threats to revoke the broadcast licenses of networks that refused to air his speech live, calling the move unconstitutional.