WINNETKA—On August 28, the U.S. Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California issued a press release announcing the first arrest in statewide election fraud. Darwin Jonathan Rivera Flores, 30, is charged with two felonies including false claim to U.S. citizenship and fraudulent voter registration.

Rivera Flores is a Honduran national and lawful permanent resident living in the San Fernando Valley. Living in the U.S. with a green card does not make one eligible to vote in the U.S.

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division issued the following statement regarding the arrest.

“Noncitizens who commit fraud so they can vote in American elections do so in violation of federal law and should expect to be prosecuted. Let this criminal complaint serve as a reminder that the Justice Department stands ready to enforce the laws Congress enacted to ensure only American citizens vote in federal elections.”

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli stated the following.

“Today’s arrest is the first of many to come. Unfortunately, because states like California allow non-citizens to easily register to vote and receive a ballot by mail, there’s no telling how many non-citizens are currently registered to vote. We again renew our request that California immediately comply with our requests to audit the voter rolls so that all voters can have confidence in our elections.”

On May 18, the U.S. Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California issued a press release announcing the felony arrest of Brenda Lee Armstrong, aka “Anika,” of Marina Del Rey, who pleaded guilty for paying another person to vote.

According to the press release, Armstrong, 64, has worked close to 20 years, collecting signatures for ballot initiatives, and giving financial incentives to people on Skid Row to vote. Her sentencing date is scheduled for August 31. She faces five years in prison for her crimes.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli, reminded the public that, “This is not an allegation, this is not a theory, this is an example of admitted voter fraud. We’re going to aggressively prosecute voter fraud.” And “Yes, there is evidence of election fraud in California.”

In May 2026, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 73 (SB73) attempting to prevent the U.S. Government from accessing voter rolls.

On August 24, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that President Trump’s executive order to tighten restrictions on mail-in voting. The high court overturned the lower court order that had previously blocked the Trump Administration from enforcing strict mail-in voting guidelines from 23 Democratic led states that argued against election integrity.

The U.S. Postal Service published a final rule to tighten mail-in voting requirements as well, mandating that states provided recipient lists and meet ballot standards.

California Attorney General, Rob Bonta continues to use California tax dollars to fight President Trump over California election integrity.

On August 27, Bonta denied that President Trump has a right to demand election integrity.
…” There is no mass widespread voter fraud. It is a figment of his imagination,” Bonta stated.