Justice Department Discloses Election-Related Charges and Pleas for Nigerian National and 11 Others

The U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday, September 28, 2026, that charges have been filed and guilty pleas entered involving a Nigerian national, George Olawunmi Johnson, and 11 other individuals, including three people without legal immigration status, in cases tied to unlawful voting, fraudulent voter registration, and other election-related crimes across the country. According to the department, the matters involve noncitizens casting ballots in federal elections, false assertions of U.S. citizenship in order to register or vote, untrue statements on citizenship applications, and the suspected discarding of about 300 mail-in ballots by a former postal employee. Johnson, a lawful permanent resident, faces one count of making a false claim to U.S. citizenship, one count of making a false claim to U.S. citizenship in order to vote, one count of fraudulent election conduct, and one count of voting by a noncitizen in a federal election. He is accused of falsely stating that he was a U.S. citizen when he registered to vote in February 2010 and of allegedly casting a ballot in the November 2024 election. Homeland Security Investigations took Johnson into custody on September 23, 2026.