James Uthmeier Announces Arrest of Twenty People for Election Fraud

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced 20 people, including 15 illegal aliens, have been arrested for voter fraud while speaking at a press conference at the Palm Beach State College Public Safety Complex in Lake Worth Beach this week.

"Don't let anybody tell you out there that election fraud does not happen. It does here in Florida," Uthmeier said. "It happens much less so than in other states. But here, we enforce the law. Laws mean nothing if they're just written on the books and you don't have people to go out enforce them and hold wrongdoers accountable."

Attorney General Uthmeier specified 100 election fraud arrests have been made since the creation of the Florida Office of Election Crimes and Security in April 2022. Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the bill creating the agency that year.

"Florida was the first state in the country to create its own Office of Election Crimes, an election integrity unit with investigators, attorneys, and prosecutors dedicated solely to protecting our sacred ballot box. Every illegal vote, every vote that should not be there, hurts the votes of lawful American citizens," Uthmeier said. 

The announcement comes after Attorney General Uthmeier charged a Canadian citizen earlier this year for allegedly illegally voting in seven general elections over two decades, including the 2024 general election. Uthmeier also charged a person for allegedly committing petition fraud last year.

Uthmeier was joined by Gov. Ron DeSantis for the announcement. Florida passed its own version of the SAVE ACT bolstering election integrity measures earlier this year.

"If somebody who is not eligible to vote casts a vote, that could cancel your vote out as a lawful citizen of this country and of the free state of Florida, and that obviously is unacceptable. Every vote does matter," DeSantis said.

Gov. DeSantis also announced the launch of a new organization restoring trust electoral systems known as Association of State and Local Election Officials. DeSantis added the organization, headed by Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd, will strengthen the "knowledge, capability, and performance of state and local election officials" to further election integrity.