Trump Administration Sends Armed Federal Agents Door-to-Door to Ask Residents Whether They Voted

Armed federal agents from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have been knocking on residents' doors in several states to question them about their immigration status and whether they registered or voted in past elections, a CBS News investigation has found.

The visits are part of the Trump administration's effort to identify potential noncitizen voters ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. Civil rights advocates have warned that armed officers visiting private homes could intimidate eligible voters and discourage them from voting.

Armed Agents Join Effort to Investigate Potential Voter Fraud

DHS has alleged that as many as 250,000 noncitizens may be illegally registered to vote, although election experts have disputed the accuracy of the figure. Meanwhile, the Department of Justice has charged 156 people with voting-fraud-related offences since the start of the Trump administration, according to reports. The US has approximately 227 million registered voters.

The home visits intensified in September and continued into October. On Monday, 19 October, the Justice Department announced that 11 foreign nationals had been arrested in California among 28 people charged with federal election-related offences. All 28 were lawful permanent residents, according to the department.

In one instance, dozens of federal agents went to the home of a 72-year-old Belizean national who was arrested at his home while wearing pyjamas. According to the Justice Department, he is accused of fraudulently registering to vote and casting ballots in US elections in 2020, twice in 2022, and again in 2024. The allegations have not been proven in court.

Critics Warn of Voter Intimidation

Jessica Marsden, a lawyer for Protect Democracy, which is supporting a lawsuit challenging DHS's door-to-door investigations, said the federal government was intervening in state election processes in an unprecedented way. 'They are doing it in a way that seems maximally designed to scare lawful voters from participating,' she said.

Meanwhile, a DHS spokesperson said the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) was actively investigating election fraud and seeking to uncover cases wherever they might be found. 'HSI is actively rooting out and investigating election fraud wherever it can be found,' the spokesperson said, adding that the agency was committed to ensuring only US citizens elect American leaders.

Eric Balliet, a former HSI agent who served under multiple administrations, said the door-knocking operation marked a significant departure from traditional law enforcement activities. 'In my 23 years with HSI, I never engaged in or was aware of any incident or initiative that sent Special Agents to private residences to verify the eligibility of voters,' Balliet said.

In June, DHS directed ICE to assist with deportations involving alleged noncitizen voters. Internal documents reviewed by CBS News later showed that hundreds of agents had been reassigned from other cases to investigate suspected voter fraud. The initiative, described in an internal directive as a 'Criminal Voter Fraud' effort, included field reviews in at least six states: California, Georgia, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Washington, and Wisconsin.

Target Lists Raise Questions Over Data Accuracy

Photographs and videos shared on social media also show HSI agents approaching homes, sometimes carrying firearms. One image posted by the agency's Kansas City account showed four agents standing outside a home where a woman held a child's hand.

The Justice Department identified the woman as Mariana Alexandra Dewey, a Peruvian national charged with four election-related offences, including an allegation that she illegally cast a ballot in the 2024 election. Her case has not yet been heard, and her lawyer declined for comment.

In another video, agents appeared to hold a document labelled 'Target List'. An HSI agent familiar with the initiative, who spoke to CBS News on condition of anonymity, said DHS draws on internal databases, voter rolls, and other datasets before employees attempt to match names against citizenship information provided by US Citizenship and Immigration Services. DHS defended the process, saying its investigations were conducted diligently and professionally and that there was no quota for criminal findings.

DHS maintained that people legally in the country who are not breaking other laws 'have nothing to fear.' The charges described in this article are allegations. All defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.