Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials considered deploying undercover agents against organizations they suspected of recruiting noncitizens to register to vote and, in a separate case, infiltrated anti-ICE activist networks, according to internal agency records. The records, obtained by Democracy Forward through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit and reviewed by Newsweek, offer a rare glimpse into the tactics Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) contemplated as part of the Trump administration's efforts to identify and investigate alleged noncitizen voting ahead of the midterm elections. In one document, HSI officials outlined plans to assess whether undercover resources could be deployed against organizations suspected of facilitating illegal voter-registration activity.
The agency said the effort was intended to identify opportunities to use undercover agents and confidential sources to support investigations in the field. "The objective is to determine potential opportunities to leverage UC resources, including the possible deployment of undercover agents (UCAs), to support investigative efforts in the field," the document states. Records show officials discussed targeting organizations in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, including through direct engagement with groups suspected of encouraging noncitizens to register to vote.
Separately, HSI said undercover agents successfully infiltrated "Rapid Response Network" groups in Minneapolis while investigating allegations that ICE officers were being stalked, harassed and doxed. According to the records, undercover personnel provided intelligence that authorities said helped confirm the coordinated targeting of federal law enforcement officials. A HSI St Paul report dated July 23, 2026, said, "Since December 2025, anti-ICE demonstrations and Rapid Response Networks (RRNs) in Minneapolis have escalated to coordinated surveillance. harassment, and obstruction of federal law enforcement.
Paul, HSI Milwaukee, and the USAO are investigating interstate stalking and doxxing of officers." It added, "HSI undercover agents have infiltrated these groups, provided actionable intelligence, and confirmed coordinated targeting of law enforcement." The Trump administration has moved aggressively to tighten election controls and target noncitizens accused of voting illegally. President Donald Trump has pushed the SAVE America Act to implement proof-of-citizenship requirements and tighter rules for mail ballots. Hardline MAGA Republicans have also floated deploying ICE agents to polling places, though the administration has said there are no plans to do so.
The push comes as documented noncitizen voting remains rare: the conservative Heritage Foundation database recorded 24 cases involving noncitizen voting from 2003 through 2023, although Heritage says its database is a sampling rather than a comprehensive count. The Trump administration has stepped up enforcement against green-card holders accused of illegally voting, including through arrests and removal proceedings.
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