Australian Woman Arrested in US for Alleged Illegal Voting

An Australian woman has been arrested in the United States after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) investigation found she had allegedly voted illegally in multiple federal elections.

Denise Nataly Migliore, 51, was indicted on four counts on June 11 for illegal voting in an election and making false statements in order to register to vote, according to the US Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana.

Prosecutors allege that in October 2022 and October 2024, Ms Migliore knowingly made false claims about her US citizenship to register to vote in a federal election.

Then on November 8, 2022 and November 5, 2024 she cast ballots that were ineligible because she was not a US citizen, prosecutors said.

The Australian was arrested at a federal courthouse in New Orleans on July 1.

"Her arrest and charges are the result of the hard work of the men and women of ICE law enforcement and our federal partners," Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said.

"Our message to aliens who vote in American elections is clear: we will find you, arrest you, and you will face the consequences, including criminal charges and deportation. Only Americans should be electing American leaders."

US President Donald Trump also weighed in on the case on Truth social on Tuesday, local time, posting a link to a news article about the investigation.

"Australian alien arrested after investigation finds she illegally voted in two federal elections," he wrote.

Mr Trump has previously alleged that immigrants have improperly influenced federal elections, but this has been debunked by comprehensive studies and state voting data, which indicates such instances are incredibly rare.

The full circumstances around Ms Migliore's arrest are not known.

Local news outlet NOLA has reported that Ms Migliore said she thought legal permanent residents could vote, and she did not know it was illegal for non-citizens to vote.

"I have been here almost three decades, I had a pending application for citizenship, and I just considered myself a citizen," she told the outlet earlier this month.

"I just didn't realise that it was such a big deal."

Ms Migliore is currently a resident of Franklinton, Louisiana but is originally from Sydney.

A Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokesperson said it was providing consular assistance to an Australian facing legal action in the United States.

There are approximately 2.9 million registered voters in Louisiana but since last year, state election officials have started verifying their citizenship status with the federal Department of Homeland Security.

It runs the information through a database called the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements program.

Both Homeland Security and the Federal Bureau of Investigation were involved in the investigation that led to Ms Migliore's arrest.

If convicted, Ms Migliore faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. She could also be fined up to $US250,000 ($360,000).