Is Voter Fraud a Federal Crime? Charges, Penalties, and Reporting

Yes, voter fraud is a federal crime whenever a federal candidate — President, Vice President, Senator, or Representative — appears on the ballot. Federal statutes cover casting a ballot as a non-citizen, registering under a false identity, buying or selling votes, voting more than once, intimidating voters, and conspiring to interfere with the right to vote. Maximum penalties range from one year in prison for simpler offenses up to ten years for conspiracy or official misconduct causing injury, and non-citizens face deportation on top of any criminal sentence.

What Makes It Federal

Elections are run by states and counties, but the moment a ballot includes a candidate for federal office, federal criminal law reaches every race on that ballot. Fraud aimed at a mayor’s race on a November general election ballot is still federal because the same ballot elects members of Congress.

Two statutes anchor this reach. Under 52 U.S.C. § 10307, it is illegal to give false registration information, pay someone to vote, or intimidate voters in any election held to select federal officeholders.¹ Separately, 52 U.S.C. § 20511 targets anyone who defrauds residents of a fair election by submitting fraudulent registration applications or procuring the casting of fraudulent ballots in a federal election.² The FBI treats election crimes as federal matters when the ballot includes federal candidates, when an election official abuses their duties, when workers are threatened, when registration is fraudulent, or when voters are not U.S. citizens.³

The Specific Charges

Federal law treats different acts differently. The penalty gap between them is large.

Voting as a Non-Citizen

Under 18 U.S.C. § 611, any non-citizen who votes in an election choosing a federal candidate faces a fine, up to one year in prison, or both.⁴ The statute carves out a narrow exception: if the election is held partly for a non-federal purpose, state or local law authorizes non-citizens to vote on that non-federal question, and the voting is conducted so a non-citizen has no opportunity to cast a ballot for a federal candidate, § 611 does not apply.

Prosecutors often pair that charge with 18 U.S.C. § 1015(f), which covers falsely claiming to be a U.S. citizen in order to register or vote. That offense alone carries up to five years in prison.⁵ Stacked together, the two charges push potential exposure well past the one-year ceiling in § 611.

False Registration

Putting a fake name, address, or residency period on a registration form is a federal crime when a federal candidate is on the ballot. Under 52 U.S.C. § 10307(c), the maximum is a $10,000 fine and five years in prison.¹ The same penalty applies under 52 U.S.C. § 20511 for knowingly submitting fraudulent registration applications.²

Vote Buying

Paying for votes, offering anything of value for a vote, and accepting payment for voting are all federal offenses. In an election with federal candidates on the ballot, 52 U.S.C. § 10307(c) sets the maximum at five years and a $10,000 fine.¹ A broader statute, 18 U.S.C. § 597, prohibits spending money to influence anyone’s vote and carries up to one year in prison, or two years if the violation was willful.⁶

Voting More Than Once

Casting multiple ballots in a single election is prosecutable under both 52 U.S.C. § 10307 and § 20511, with a five-year maximum under either. This covers voting in person after already mailing an absentee ballot, voting in two jurisdictions, and impersonating another voter.¹

Voter Intimidation

Under 18 U.S.C. § 594, intimidating or threatening someone to interfere with their right to vote in a federal election carries up to one year in prison.⁷ Section 10307(b) adds a separate prohibition that reaches intimidation directed at anyone for voting, attempting to vote, or helping another person vote.¹

Conspiracy and Corrupt Officials

The heaviest penalties come from statutes that aren’t election-specific. Under 18 U.S.C. § 241, conspiring with others to interfere with someone’s right to vote carries up to ten years in prison, and up to life if the conspiracy results in death.⁸ This is the charge used when fraud involves coordination — a group scheme to stuff a ballot box or suppress votes at a precinct.

When election officials are the ones committing the fraud, 18 U.S.C. § 242 applies. An official who willfully deprives a voter of rights while acting in an official capacity faces up to one year, rising to ten years if the violation causes bodily injury.⁹ Section 10307(a) also prohibits anyone acting in an official capacity from refusing to count a qualified voter’s ballot, and reaches ballot stuffing or false vote counts by officials.¹

Honest Mistakes Are Not Crimes

Nearly every federal election crime statute requires that the person acted “knowingly and willfully.” That language appears in 52 U.S.C. § 20511, in 52 U.S.C. § 10307(c), and in 18 U.S.C. § 1015(f).² A clerical mistake on a registration form, accidentally receiving two ballots because of a database glitch, or sincerely believing you were eligible to vote does not meet the threshold for prosecution. The government has to prove the person knew the conduct was unlawful and did it anyway.

Both 18 U.S.C. § 611 and § 1015(f) also carve out a specific defense: a non-citizen whose parents are or were U.S. citizens, who was raised in the United States, and who reasonably believed at the time of voting that they were a citizen.⁴⁵

Penalties at a Glance

Conspiracy against voting rights, 18 U.S.C. § 241: up to 10 years, or life if death results.⁸
False registration, vote buying, or multiple voting, 52 U.S.C. § 10307(c): up to $10,000 and 5 years.¹
Fraudulent registrations or ballots in federal elections, 52 U.S.C. § 20511: up to 5 years.²
False citizenship claim to register or vote, 18 U.S.C. § 1015(f): up to 5 years.⁵
Voting by a non-citizen, 18 U.S.C. § 611: up to 1 year.⁴
Vote buying under 18 U.S.C. § 597: up to 1 year, or 2 years if willful.⁶
Voter intimidation, 18 U.S.C. § 594: up to 1 year.⁷
Official misconduct depriving rights, 18 U.S.C. § 242: up to 1 year, or 10 years if bodily injury results.⁹

Most of these offenses are felonies, which brings the usual trailing consequences — loss of firearm rights under federal law, generally no jury service, and in most states a temporary or permanent loss of the right to vote, with reinstatement rules that vary from automatic release-based restoration to a required gubernatorial pardon.

Immigration Fallout for Non-Citizens

A non-citizen who votes in violation of any federal, state, or local election law is both inadmissible and deportable under 8 U.S.C. §§ 1182(a)(10)(D)(i) and 1227(a)(6)(A). No criminal conviction is required; the act of unlawful voting is itself enough to trigger removal. The only statutory exception mirrors the one in the criminal code: a non-citizen raised in the U.S. by citizen parents who sincerely believed they were a citizen when they voted.¹⁰

How Long the Government Has to Charge

Under 18 U.S.C. § 3282, the general statute of limitations for non-capital federal offenses is five years from the date of the violation.¹¹ Election fraud investigations frequently involve slow work through registration databases and ballot records; cases that aren’t charged within five years are gone.

Where to Report Suspected Fraud

Federal prosecutions are led by the Department of Justice, with the Election Crimes Branch of the Public Integrity Section coordinating cases nationally and working with local U.S. attorney offices.¹²¹³ The FBI investigates and describes its role as important but limited, focused on cases involving federal candidates, official misconduct, threats to workers, fraudulent registrations, or non-citizen voting.³

If you want to report something, you have a few options. Contact your local FBI field office, your local U.S. attorney’s office, or the Public Integrity Section directly. For intimidation or suppression concerns, the DOJ Civil Rights Division runs a hotline at 1-800-253-3931 and takes reports online. Your state or local election office is also a legitimate place to file a complaint.¹⁴

1
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 52 USC 10307 – Prohibited Acts
2
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 52 USC 20511 – Criminal Penalties
3
Federal Bureau of Investigation. Election Crimes
4
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 611 – Voting by Aliens
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1015 – Naturalization, Citizenship or Alien Registry
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 597 – Expenditures to Influence Voting
7
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 594 – Intimidation of Voters
8
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 241 – Conspiracy Against Rights
9
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 242 – Deprivation of Rights Under Color of Law
10
Congressional Research Service. Immigration Consequences of Unlawful Voting by Aliens
11
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 3282 – Statute of Limitations
12
Department of Justice. Election Crimes Branch
13
United States Department of Justice. Public Integrity Section
14
USAGov. Voter Fraud, Voter Suppression, and Other Election Crimes