Mount Clemens, MI → The concerns first raised in Macomb County last month about non-citizens appearing in jury pools and, in some cases, on voter rolls have now reached Washington, D.C., with top Republican lawmakers formally asking the U.S. Department of Justice to step in.
RELATED: Fraud Concerns Raised After Non-Citizens Found in Macomb County Jury Pool and Voter Rolls
In a February 10, 2026 letter sent to Attorney General Pamela Bondi, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform said it is examining the integrity of jury selection and voter registration processes following reports out of Michigan. The letter specifically references the findings by Macomb County Clerk Anthony Forlini, who uncovered that over a four-month period 239 non-citizens were included in the county’s jury pool, and 14 of those individuals appeared to have been registered to vote at some point.
The committee is now requesting a federal briefing to better understand what the DOJ knows, what actions have been taken, and whether similar issues could be happening elsewhere in the country.
As first reported in January, Forlini’s review stemmed from his office’s access to both jury records and Michigan’s Qualified Voter File. Jury pools in the state are drawn from driver’s license and state ID databases, and under Michigan law, individuals applying for a license are automatically registered to vote unless they opt out. According to Forlini, that system does not reliably verify citizenship status, allowing non-citizens to slip into both jury summons lists and, in some cases, the voter registration database.
The Oversight Committee letter highlights those findings directly and notes that federal law gives the attorney general authority to bring civil actions to prevent violations of voting qualifications. Lawmakers are now seeking details on when the DOJ first became aware of the issue in Macomb County, whether any investigations or audits have been launched, and how many complaints or referrals may have been received involving non-citizens in jury pools or voter rolls in Michigan and beyond.
The request also asks whether any state or local officials have resisted or delayed cooperation with federal inquiries, and what steps the DOJ plans to take to prevent non-citizens from continuing to appear in jury pools or voter registration systems.
The developments add new pressure on Michigan’s election infrastructure, which is overseen at the state level by Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, while legal matters tied to potential unlawful voting would fall under Attorney General Dana Nessel. Both are Democrats. With Republicans in Congress now formally asking a Republican U.S. attorney general to review the situation, the issue has quickly escalated from a county-level discovery into a national political and legal matter.
Forlini previously warned that language barriers and confusion on voter registration forms could be contributing to the problem, but said the outcome still raises serious concerns. Beyond election integrity, the presence of ineligible individuals in jury pools could also impact criminal trials, potentially opening the door to appeals and post-conviction challenges if juries were improperly formed.
The Oversight Committee has asked for a DOJ briefing by February 17 as it evaluates the scope of the issue and whether further federal action may be necessary.
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