For the second time in four months, federal prosecutors have charged non-citizens with voting illegally — in a state that doesn't verify citizenship at registration

NEWARK, N.J. — For the second time in four months, federal prosecutors in New Jersey have charged non-citizens with illegally voting in federal elections. The May 1 announcement brings the total number of defendants charged under the Election Integrity Task Force to six.

The four defendants charged on May 1 are David Neewilly, 73, of Atlantic County; Jacenth Beadle Exum, 70, of Bergen County; Idan Choresh, 43, of Monmouth County; and Abhinandan Vig, 33, of Monmouth County.

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, each was a non-citizen when they registered to vote in New Jersey, falsely attesting U.S. citizenship on registration forms. Each subsequently voted in at least one federal election: the 2020 general election in three cases and the 2022 general election in one. Neewilly voted in both the 2020 and 2024 general elections, including presidential races. They then applied for naturalization, falsely claiming on their N-400 applications that they had never registered or voted in any federal election.

All four face charges under 18 U.S.C. § 611 (Voting by an Alien in a Federal Election) and related naturalization fraud statutes. If convicted, they face up to 10 years' imprisonment on the most serious counts.

The May 1 charges follow the January 8 prosecution of two Bergen County men on identical charges: Muhammad Muzammal, 37, and Muhammad Shakeel, 62. Both cases were brought by the same Election Integrity Task Force, a coalition of the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

The task force was formed under the U.S. Attorney's Office in Newark, not as a standalone entity but as a coordination mechanism for cases that cross agency boundaries. The six defendants charged share a common process: non-citizen registration, voting in federal elections, then lying about it on naturalization applications. The N-400 form requires applicants to swear under penalty of perjury that they have never voted in federal elections—a question that, for these defendants, became a trap.

The May 1 announcement included statements from the top ranks of the Trump administration's law enforcement apparatus. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said, "This administration will not tolerate aliens who attempt to vote in our elections when they know they are not eligible. These green card holders lied in order to register to vote and then lied again to immigration authorities."

FBI Director Kash Patel echoed the remarks. "Noncitizens voting is a federal crime — period — and while other administrations may have looked the other way in the past, those days are over," he said. ICE Director Todd Lyons stated that "American citizens — and only American citizens — are electing American leaders."

The statements frame the prosecutions as part of a broader federal priority. But they do not address how the defendants registered to vote in the first place. New Jersey does not appear to cross-check voter registration against federal citizenship databases, according to data compiled by Ballotpedia. The state is among those not listed as using the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) database for voter verification.

The Trump administration's Department of Justice sued New Jersey in February, seeking access to state voter rolls for citizenship verification. The case remains pending. The New Jersey chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union has challenged the federal demand, arguing it threatens voter privacy and could intimidate eligible voters.

Election officials and voting rights advocates maintain that non-citizen voting is isolated and rare. WHYY News reported that "current and former election officials have said such fraud is isolated and rare," adding that it’s "virtually impossible to pull off a large-scale vote-rigging operation." The Center for Election Innovation has stated that "claims about noncitizen registrations and voting allege vanishingly small numbers."

The task force has not indicated whether additional charges are forthcoming. The six defendants face initial appearances and potential trials. The DOJ's lawsuit against New Jersey for voter roll access continues through the courts. For New Jersey's election system, the question is whether the gap in citizenship verification will be addressed, and if so, whether it’s by federal mandate, state legislation, or continued prosecutions after the fact.

Sources

• U.S. Attorney's Office, District of New Jersey, "Multiple Aliens Charged with Illegally Voting in Federal Elections" (May 1, 2026)

• U.S. Attorney's Office, District of New Jersey, "Aliens Charged with Illegally Voting in a Federal Election" (January 8, 2026)

• New Jersey Division of Elections, Voter Registration Requirements (accessed May 2026)

• Ballotpedia, "Voter Registration and SAVE Database Usage by State" (2026)

• WHYY News, "Election Fraud Context" (2026)

• ACLU-NJ, Court Filing Challenging DOJ Voter Roll Access (February 2026)