An online voter registration filed on October 9, 2024, and a ballot cast in person weeks later at a polling place in Emmaus, Pennsylvania, have ended in a federal guilty plea from a Philippine citizen who holds permanent legal residency in the United States but never became an American citizen.
Evelyn Miller, 37, of Emmaus, admitted to illegal voting on September 16, 2026, before US Magistrate Judge Scott M. Reid, Inquirer.net reported, citing the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin credited the case to joint work between Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Justice Department.
“This alien from the Philippines pleaded guilty to illegally voting in the 2024 election in Pennsylvania,” Mullin said in a statement released by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). “Thanks to the hard work of the men and women of HSI, as well as our partners at the Department of Justice, this alien will soon face justice for her efforts to subvert our elections.”
“American elections are for Americans only,” he said.
According to DHS, the investigation opened after HSI received a tip that a Lehigh County resident may have unlawfully registered or voted. The Emmaus resident signed up online less than a month before the general election, then showed up at a local polling site on Election Day, November 5, 2024, to cast her ballot, the agency said.
HSI and FBI agents went to her home in July 2025 to question her. During that interview, the 37-year-old admitted to registering online ahead of the election and voting in person afterward, DHS said.
Federal prosecutors said both HSI and the FBI handled the investigation. Sentencing is set for December 16, 2026. The defendant faces up to one year in prison, one year of supervised release, a fine of as much as $100,000, and a $25 special assessment.
US Attorney David Metcalf said his office would not let such violations pass. “We intend to prosecute anyone who corrupts our democracy by illegally voting in its elections,” he said.
Although the Philippine national lives in the country legally, she does not hold US citizenship, prosecutors said, and both federal and Pennsylvania law restrict voting in the state’s elections to citizens alone.
